DEME has just confirmed its order for two new trailing suction hopper dredgers to enhance its fleet. Built according to a ‘green’ design, the two vessels will have a ‘Green Passport’ and a ‘Clean Design’ notation.
The ships will be equipped with ‘dual fuel’ engines and LNG tanks, ensuring compliance with all of the international emission requirements within the Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECA).
‘Dual fuel’ technology is both sustainable and future oriented, as it enables engines to operate on either diesel or LNG while limiting the CO2, Nox and SOx emissions to the strictest minimum.
In view of the innovative technology, the ships will be manned with especially trained high-tech personnel and they will be ‘best in class’ according to their specific category. Both trailing suction hopper dredgers will be built by the Dutch shipyard Royal IHC. They will be operational before the end of 2016.
The first vessel will be a new generation trailing suction hopper dredger in the ‘Antigoon class’ with a hopper volume of approx. 8,000 m³ and a total length (LOA) of 104 m. Its maximum draught of 7.5 m and powerful pump for pumping dredging materials ashore make this vessel the perfect all-round solution.
The second vessel will be a new generation trailing suction hopper dredger to replace the ‘Orwell class’, with a hopper volume of 3,000 (3,500)m³.
Its design ensures optimized maintenance dredging works in shallow waters, with primary assets including a very limited maximum draught of 5.00 (5.80)m corresponding with a hopper volume of 3,000 (3,500)m³, excellent carrying capacity and, given the ship’s length of 77 m, a relatively large suction tube.
Earlier this year the DEME Group announced its order of two smaller ‘green’ vessels, the self-propelled jack-up vessel ‘APOLLO’ and the multipurpose cable-laying ship ‘LIVING STONE’, which will both service the offshore energy market and are also equipped with ‘dual fuel’ main engines.