High capacity gas barges delivered
A chemicals manufacturer has taken delivery of three new gas barges which will enable the efficient and competitive delivery of butane gas in Europe.
INEOS’ new barges will become the largest gas barges operating on the River Rhine. They will deliver butane gas from the ARA region (Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam) to the INEOS ethylene cracker facility at Koln, Germany. In addition, they will provide INEOS Trading & Shipping with options to effectively trade butane in Europe.
Hugh Carmichael, feedstocks trading director of INEOS Trading & Shipping, said: “This supersized delivery is the result of a four-year project to design and build this new class of barge. They have three times the cargo capacity of typical gas barges.”
Large capacity
Two of the barges are 110m by 15m with six cargo tanks holding a combined 4446 cubic metres. The third is 110m by 17.5m with six tanks holding 5538 cubic metres. The barges all use a veth pod-drive system, rather than the more usual shaft propulsion.
A fourth sister ship will be delivered later this year.
The build project was managed by Imperial Gas Barging, who will also operate the barges on behalf of INEOS.
Construction of the barges was split between two Dutch companies: Teamco Shipyard in Heusden, which subcontracted hull construction to Rensen-Driessen Shipbuilding B.V and then had work completed by partner Stocznia Sp. Zo.o. Shipyard; and Veka Shipbuilding Group in Werkendam, which completed all of the construction in Holland.
The gas tanks were manufactured by Barlage GMbH.
By Rebecca Jeffrey
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