Competition between KOTUG and the German towage companies in Bremerhaven and Hamburg has been fierce and was frequently described in the media as the 'Tug Wars'. On confirming the sale, Mr J W Schuchmann Managing Director of Bugsier said, 'It was a straightforward business decision based on availability, performance and price. We needed tugs and these vessels were already under construction in Singapore. We have a particular need for tugs with 80 tons bollard pull to serve the new classes of containership and believe that the shallow draft of the 'Rotor Tug' and its performance in the lock systems are beneficial.'

Three Wartsila 8L20C engines with a minimum rating of 1,600kW at 1,000rpm will power each vessel. Power will be transmitted to three fully azimuthing CS225-S/WN-K 2300 thrusters from Wartsila-Lips Propulsion Systems, incorporating controllable pitch propellers and high performance HR nozzles to give the predicted bollard pull of 80 tons.

The 24.30m long tugs will have a beam of 12.00m, a draft of 5.95m and be equipped for fire fighting to FiFi 1 standards.

Kooren Shipbuilding and Trading BV, and ASL Shipyard Pte Ltd.

are building the tugs to the highest standard with various unlisted features not normally incorporated in a tug.