Van Oord puts 2 new LNG dredgers to work

Vox Apolonia and Vox Ariane will be joined by Vox Alexia after she is named in September to bring the number of LNG-powered dredgers to three.

The first two vessels have been tasked with beach nourishment work along the Dutch coast in the province of Zeeland, which the Dutch government fears is at risk of flooding if the sea level rises.

Rijkswaterstaat, the executive agency of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, has put in place a Netherlands Coastline Care programme intended to reinforce the coast, with works for Van Oord including beach and trench wall replenishment at the Westkapelse Zeedijk, Oostgat and Niewwvliet-Groede.

Sand is pumped to the beach by trailing suction hopper dredger via a pipeline, and parts of the channel just off the coast are filled with sand.

“If it becomes less deep, the current can carry less sand and the coast stays in place longer,” says Van Oord. “In total, approximately four million cubic metres of sand will be applied.”

Van Oord is touting the fact that both dredgers are powered by LNG by saying that it makes the project ‘extra special’.

“This is a more sustainable alternative for Marine Gas Oil, free of sulphur and particulates,” the firm says. “The combustion process is also different to that of MGO, resulting in far less nitrogen dioxide being emitted.”

Last year Van Oord scooped the Dutch Maritime KVNR Shipping Award for the three vessels, which were called ‘a trailblazer for international standards’.