Sanmar’s double delivery for Canadian owner

The five-vessel order, whose launch Maritime Journal editor Debbie Mason attended in March, has been a major news item for both Sanmar and Canadian designer Robert Allan.

HaiSea Marine, a JV majority owned by the indigenous Haisla Nation in partnership with Seaspan ULC, is a project described as “the most environmentally friendly tugboat fleet in the world”, eventually serving LNG Canada’s new export facility in Kitimat, British Columbia.

The five vessels are a carefully selected mix, combining electric propulsion capable of 70tbp from 6,000kWh capacity batteries and allowing ship-berthing and unberthing on battery power alone, complemented by two powerful LNG/diesel dual-fuel escort tugs providing 100tbp and indirect escort forces of approximately 200t.

The RAstar 4000DF pair’s activities will include long-distance escort missions purely on LNG, achieving significant reductions in emissions compared to even Tier III standards and when running on diesel will feature an exhaust after-treatment system meeting these standards.

The first of the 40m long LNG pair, Haisea Kermode, has now arrived in Vancouver, Canada where it will initially operate before transferring eventually to the Kitimat operation. The second vessel will be named Haisea Warrior.

Earlier, the arrival of the Robert Allan ElectRA 2800 SX Sanmar-exclusive design Haisea Brave, joining previously delivered Haisea Wamis and Haisea Wee’git, completed that particular series.

Also working initially in Vancouver, the 28.4m long trio will benefit from ample clean hydroelectric power in Kitimat, where they will recharge their batteries from dedicated shore-charging facilities between missions, effectively resulting in zero emissions.

Sanmar says HaiSea Marine’s green tug fleet is expected to reduce CO₂ emissions by approximately 10,000t per annum compared to diesel-powered alternatives, along with major reductions of NOX, SOX, CO and particulate matter.

They are also described as “exceptionally quiet, both onboard and in terms of underwater radiated noise, further enhancing the protection of both marine and wildlife in the area”.

Four more ElectRA-series tugs are in Sanmar’s pipeline, two for South American operator SAAM, one for Norway’s Bukser og Berging, and one for its own fleet, which is due for delivery in Q1 2024.