Jenkins hopper barges Nab and Needles busy in Solent area

Winter dredging is well underway again with the new look split hopper barges Nab and Needles both back hard at work in the Solent area, Jenkins Marine said.

Working together with Jenkins’ 30m x 9m backhoe dredger ‘Doreen Dorward’ and her onboard 50t long reach excavator, they enable dredging to continue around the clock to support marinas on the South Coast.

According to the company, they will be kept busy until Easter 2022 dredging Marinas.

Both 300m³ capacity, self-propelled hopper barges have undergone a major refit to ensure they are more capable than ever of performing above and beyond our customer’s expectations and a relentless work schedule.

Jenkins said that both vessels have:

• new 100KW bow thruster,

• new larger 200Kva generator,

• new wheelhouse, with improved 360 degree visibility,

• better accommodation with a drying room,

• aircon for crew comfort.

Also, a complete rebuild of the main thruster and a new engine canopy were included. The refit work was completed with a dry docking and a freshly cleaned hull bottom for both.

Marinas around the UK are subject to ongoing siltation and require regular dredging to maintain water depths to ensure boats don’t run aground on their approach to the marina and are able to berth and manoeuvre safely once they have entered it.