Multraship, a towage and salvage specialist has continued its fleet renewal programme with confirmation that it has bought two new Damen ASD 2810-type tugs with state-of-the-art FiFi 1 firefighting capabilities. The tugs, to be named Multratug 26 and Multratug 27, are building in Romania for delivery in June/July 2013.
Contracts for the two tugs were signed during the course of Multraship’s annual client gathering in Terneuzen on April 18, where Multraship managing director Leendert Muller said, “We are delighted to have concluded deals for these vessels, built to a proven design by a yard with extensive experience and expertise in this sector.”
“The new tugs will be mostly engaged in harbour towage activities in the Zeeland Seaports and Antwerp areas. In addition to their primary duties, they will also be on standby, ready to respond in the event of fire- or explosion-related emergencies in the western and central part of the River Scheldt, as part of a February 2013 commitment entered into with the Zeeland Safety Region to keep two FiFi 1 tugs on standby.”
“These new tugs provide confirmation of Multraship’s commitment to investing for both the present and the future. In the towage and salvage sector, if you don’t invest, you risk getting left behind. It is also important to demonstrate to all sectors of the maritime industry that you are prepared to invest money, time and resources in everything from research & development to fleet renewal in order to provide a valuable towage, emergency response and salvage capability,” said Muller, who currently serves as vice-president of the International Salvage Union.
The tugs will have a minimum bollard pull of 62.5 tons and a maximum speed of 13.5 knots. They are being built at Damen Shipyards in Galati, Romania, in which country Multraship has a representative office and provides towage and salvage services as part of its strategic coverage of the Black Sea area.
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Multraship, April 19, 2013