Contract tug makes her way to Sullom Voe

A new tug for the Shetland Islands Council harbour operation at Sellaness was making her way up the east coast of Scotland this afternoon.

The 32m long, two-year-old, Multratug 29 is being “bare boat” chartered as part of the council’s tug fleet renewal project, and will replace the Tirrick which is being sold to Greek buyers.

Multratug 29 is on charter to Shetland Islands Council.

Multratug 29 has been operated by Multraship as part of its fleet in the busy ports of Antwerp, Rotterdam and Terneuzen in Holland. The Damen 3212 class vessel is said by the council to be a very well tried and proven design. She has a 12m beam and a bollard pull of over 70 tonnes and was built in Vietnam.

Executive manager of ports and harbours John Smith said that the vessel was equipped with azimuth stern drive (ASD) – a type of 360 degree drive that had been installed in all the vessels with a proven track record that the council had looked at.

The Tirrick will leave Shetland next month after 33 years’ service. A “bare boat” charter means the Multratug 29 will be operated by SIC tug staff once they have completed a training and familiarisation programme.

SIC staff have already been on simulator and practical training courses in Holland on the new vessel and she will be accompanied by a training master and engineer as further familiarisation is carried out at the port of Sullom Voe. Once Multratug 29 has proven her satisfactory performance on the job then the Council has an option to buy the vessel.

NO COMMENTS

Add Your Comment

Add Your Comment

Please note, it is the policy of The Shetland Times to publish comments and letters from named individuals only. Both forename and surname are required.

Comments are moderated. Contributors must observe normal standards of decency and tolerance for the opinions of others.

The views expressed are those of contributors and not of The Shetland Times.

The Shetland Times reserves the right to decline or remove any contribution without notice or stating reason.

Comments are limited to 200 words but please email longer articles or letters to editorial@shetlandtimes.co.uk for consideration and include a daytime telephone number and your address. If emailing information in confidence please put "Not for publication" in both the subject line and at the top of the main message.

200 words left

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

logo

Get Latest News in Your Inbox

Join the The Shetland Times mailing list to get one daily email update at midday on what's happening in Shetland.