Keppel O&M delivers second dual-fuel hopper dredger to Van Oord

Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M), through its wholly-owned subsidiary Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS), has delivered the second of three dual-fuel hopper dredgers to Dutch maritime company, Van Oord.

Named Vox Apolonia, the energy efficient TSHD is equipped with green features and has the ability to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG). It is identical to the first dredger, Vox Ariane, delivered by Keppel O&M in April this year. A third dredger for Van Oord, Vox Alexia, is on track for delivery in 2023.

Mr Tan Leong Peng, Managing Director (New Energy / Business), Keppel O&M, said, “We are pleased to deliver our second dual-fuel dredger to Van Oord, extending our track record in delivering new build high quality and sustainable vessels. LNG plays an important role in the clean energy transition. Through our ongoing partnership with Van Oord, we are pleased to support the industry’s transition to a more sustainable future by delivering efficient vessels with more environmentally friendly features.”

Built to the requirements of the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) Tier III regulations, the Dutch flagged Vox Apolonia has a hopper capacity of 10,500 cubic metres and includes several features that reduces fuel consumption and carbon emissions. Like the Vox Ariane, it is also equipped with innovative and sustainable systems and has obtained the Green Passport and Clean Ship Notation by Bureau Veritas.

Mr Maarten Sanders, Manager Newbuilding of Van Oord, said: “Van Oord is committed to lowering its impact on climate change by reducing its emissions and becoming net-zero. We can make most progress by investing in the decarbonisation of our vessels, since approximately 95% of Van Oord’s carbon footprint is linked to its fleet.”

According to him, the delivery of the Vox Apolonia is another important milestone in this process. In the designing the new LNG hoppers, Van Oord focused on reducing the carbon footprint and working more efficiently by reusing energy and making optimal use of the automated systems in combination with electrical drives.

The state-of-the-art Vox Apolonia is equipped with a high degree of automation for its marine and dredging systems, as well as an onboard data acquisition and integrated control system to enhance efficiency and operational cost savings.

The TSHD has one suction pipe with a submerged e-driven dredge pump, two shore discharge dredge pumps, five bottom doors, a total installed power of 14,500 kW, and can accommodate 22 persons.