TOWLINES

The four vessels are being built by Niigata Shipyard in Japan to a new Ulstein design designated SX 157 and featuring Ulstein’s X-BOW and their first reference for such a towing vessel. Delivering 24,400bhp, a bollard pull in excess of 280 tonnes and built to ice class 1B they are intended for worldwide long-distance towing with the ability to position and moor FPSOs and similar floating installations. Another story Tugs & Towing looks forward to covering in detail in the not too distant future.

Dutch towage service provider Kotug have teamed up with Becker Marine Systems to develop an LNG hybrid barge to supply power to cruise ships in Rotterdam. The floating energy plant will provide environmentally friendly power to moored ships, reducing levels of emissions resultant from the more traditional use of ships’ onboard generators while alongside.

While this project is not related to their core activities, Kotug are known for their innovation particularly with development of hybrid tugs and thus well placed to move the barge and provide commercial, technical and operational management. It will deliver heat to factories or to the central city heating system during winter seasons and is due to enter service in 2017.

At the AGM of the International Salvage Union in New York recently Mr John Witte Jr was appointed as new President replacing Mr Leendert Muller who will continue as a member of the ISU Executive Committee.
Mr Witte is Executive Vice President and Senior Salvage Master of Donjon Marine Co Inc based in New Jersey USA and past President of the American Salvage Association. Mr Witte commented: “… it is a great honour to be the President of the ISU and I will do my best to represent our members’ interests as we continue working on the issues we face and engaging with our stakeholders to make sure that this industry continues to provide a vital service to world shipping.”

We end on a sad note reporting that four of the seven man Polish crew of the tug Zeus lost their lives after the vessel caught fire in the southern Swedish port of Sölvesborg. The fire started in the engine room while the tug was alongside and quickly spread throughout the vessel before shoreside fire services could extinguish the flames.

The 28.4m LOA, 8m beam, 1,650bhp Zeus was built by Svendborg Skibsværft in 1966 and has been a regular sight around European ports for many years, including the towing of part-completed hulls between shipyards in Europe. Everyone’s thoughts will be with the families and friends of those who perished on this sad occasion.

By Peter Barker