Damen Delivers Dredging Equipment for Canadian Hopper Dredger

Currently a hopper dredger is being built in Canada which will perform the maintenance dredging activities of the St Lawrence Seaway. Ocean’s companies, the shipbuilder and future dredging contractor, have opted for a proven design, fitted out with a Damen trailing pipe and other Damen dredging gear.

The self propelled 62 m long 1.180 m3 split hopper dredger will be fitted out with a 500 mm trailing pipe for dredging at max – 305 m. The vessel, built under Germanischer Lloyd and provided with a Transport Canada certificate, has a Damen dredge pump doing some 5.500 m3/h requiring 1.300 HP. Other elements of the Damen delivery are the overflows, the jetwater monitors, the dredging instrumentation and the bow coupling unit. As an exception to the rule Damen Dredging also supplies the steel package for the hull.

The vessel is currently under construction at the Groupe Ocean yard at Isle-aux-Coudres. The yard, located on an island in the St Lawrence Seaway north-east of Québec City, has started the job mid July and the hopper dredger will be launched in July next year : a fairly short delivery time taking into account that the yard has not built hopper dredgers before. The short delivery time is possible as the vessel is a sister vessel of the “Omvac Diez”, recently built in Spain to the design of the naval architect Carceller. The construction of the vessel is a close cooperation of Carceller, Damen and Ocean.

In August 2012 the newly built hopper dredger will begin a 7-year dredging contract for the maintenance dredging of two ship channels in the St Lawrence Seaway. The total annual dredged volume is estimated at 70.000 m3 of sediments. The dredging is essential to re-establish the depth of the waterway, which is the main maritime route in Canada with over 6.000 ship passages every year. As the St Lawrence job is done in only 3 months a year, the trailing dredger will do other dredging jobs. These jobs are located more to the south, due to the heavy local winter conditions.

Damen is convinced that the Canadian hopper dredger will be as successful as its Spanish sister vessel. It will be a valuable addition to the Canadian dredging fleet and an essential enhancement in the safety of the commercial navigation on the St Lawrence. The construction of the first sections is well on its way, which is of vital importance as they have to be on the slipway before winter comes – as it comes in this part of the world with 3 m of snow…

About Damen Dredging Equipment :

Damen Dredging Equipment is a specialised supplier of dredging equipment and dredging instrumentation & automation. The company, based in Nijkerk, the Netherlands, has over 70 years of experience in the construction of dredging equipment serving the worldwide dredging industry. The dredging tools made are all built to specific customer requirements, making use of a wide range of standard equipment. The company is fully owned by the Damen Shipyards Group.

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Source: damendredging, October 26, 2011