A new patrol vessel/tug for Iceland
Iceland has taken delivery of the ‘state of the art’ patrol vessel Thor.
After a long and anxious wait, the Icelandic ‘Landhelgisgaeslan’ (Coastal Guard) (LHG) has taken delivery of its new multipurpose offshore patrol vessel Thor.
The new vessel was ordered in 2007 to replace the elderly and now decommissioned flagship, Odin, and has been built to patrol the Icelandic exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in North Atlantic territorial waters to protect marine resources and perform search and rescue (SAR) operations. In order to fulfil the later requirement Thor has a significant towing and emergency response capability, hence its inclusion in Tugs & Towing.
The vessel was designed by Rolls Royce Marine and is a larger and faster version of the Norwegian Coast Guard vessel KV Harstad, completed in 2005. Designated a UT 512L, Thor has many common features but incorporates changes to suit the particular requirements of the LHG.
Construction was entrusted to the Astilleros y Maestranzas de la Armada (ASMAR) shipyard in Chile, with delivery originally scheduled for June 2010. This was delayed following to damage caused by an earthquake and tsunami that struck the area in February of that year. Thor was in the dry dock and nearing completion when the shipyard was badly affected by the catastrophe and it was feared that the vessel was damaged beyond repair. Fortunately, when a close examination of the vessel was possible, it was found that the only real damage was to the main propulsion machinery. After the necessary remedial work was completed, the ship was finally handed over to the LHG in September 2011, and arrived in Reykjavik for the first time in October.
Thor is a vessel of 93.6m in length, with a beam of 16m, a draft of 5.80m and a displacement of 3,920 tons. Two Rolls-Royce Bergen B 32 40L main engines generate a total of up to 10,730 bhp to drive a pair of Kamewa Ulstein controllable pitch propellers. This powerplant gives the vessel a maximum speed of 19.5 knots and a bollard pull of 120 tons.
A high degree of manoeuvrability is achieved with the addition of two 450kW transverse thrusters, one in the bow and one aft, and a 883 kW retractable fully azimuthing thruster forward.
An extensive inventory of equipment enables Thor to carry out search and rescue operations, oil retrieval and containment, fire fighting, carry out underwater search by multi-beam sonar, and operate a medium sized helicopter and carry out helicopter refuelling from its own flight deck. Two rigid inflatable boats are carried and a 40mm Bofirs gun is installed. Accommodation is provided for a complement of 48 persons.
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