Damen Shiprepair Brest announced it has completed repairs to the hull of LNG carrier Methane Princess after its collision with a harbor tug in Equatorial Guinea.
The 266-meter, 138,000 cbm ship sustained damage above the waterline on the aft starboard side while berthing at the Punta Europa LNG Terminal.
Following the collision, Methane Princess proceeded to the UK’s Milford Haven LNG terminal to offload. The class association required immediate repairs and issued an extension to the vessel’s certificate, which made it ineligible for charter until the damage was made good.
To save time and return the vessel to operations as soon as possible, vessel owner Golar LNG requested that Damen Shiprepair Brest perform the hot work repairs with the vessel afloat and with residual gas in the tanks so as to keep them cool. By doing so, the vessel could return to work almost immediately without the usual 3 to 4-day cooling down process.
Once the carrier was alongside, several controls were performed by a shore-certified chemist to identify the various risk areas and certify that the hot work area was safe before starting. The yard team then constructed a platform against the side of the vessel side, held in place by eyes welded on to the hull, and the work went ahead to remove and replace the damaged steel. Once the welding and the necessary tests and certification by the class were completed, the hull area was painted.
This was the second time the LNG Methane Princess was repaired by Damen. The vessel was at the yard in last September for a scheduled intermediate survey that included a full scope of work on the engines, cargo tanks and related equipment.