A new vessel from Sealink’s Miri Yard

The Sealink Slipways, located at Miri in the Sarawak Province of East Malaysia, has recently delivered a 53.8 by 13.8-metre offshore and service vessel to Rederij Groen of the Netherlands.

‘Built to the same Conan Wu & Associates design as the 2008 ‘Venture G’, ‘Maria G’s’ key distinction lies in its switch to Cummins for main propulsion. A pair of Cummins KTA50-M2 mains, each generating 1,193kW at 1,800 rpm also power the vessel, and the main’s turn two-metre diameter propellers in nozzles on 19.5cm diameter shafts through Twin Disc MG5506 gears with 6:1 reduction. A total of three Cummins QSM11DM-powered 245 kW generators meet the vessel’s electrical requirements, and the deck contains a hydraulic crane (TTS GP 320-10-15,0). The ‘Maria G’ is also fitted with a Schottel STT 330 LK FPP tunnel type five tonne bow thruster.

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IMO Council makes 2010 the ‘Year of the seafarer’

The Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), meeting for its 102nd session in London (29 June to 3 July 2009), agreed that next year’s theme for World Maritime Day will be “2010: Year of the Seafarer”, endorsing a proposal from IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos.

‘The theme – to be celebrated throughout the year and also at a World Maritime Day parallel event in Argentina – was selected to give IMO and the international maritime community the opportunity to pay tribute to the world’s seafarers for their unique contribution to society and in recognition of the risks they shoulder in the execution of their duties in an often hostile environment. In proposing it, SecretaryGeneral Mitropoulos said that “the unique hazards confronting the 1.5 million seafarers of the world – including pirate attacks, unwarranted detention and abandonment – coupled with the predicted looming shortage of ships’ officers, make it ever more incumbent to take immediate and effective action to forestall a situation from developing in which ships are not manned with sufficient skilled personnel”. The theme complements IMO’s ongoing “Go to Sea!” campaign to attract new entrants to the shipping industry, which was launched in November 2008 in association with the International Labour Organization, the “Round Table” of shipping industry organizations and the International Transport Workers’ Federation. It is also in line with the comprehensive review, initiated in 2006, of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978 and its associated Code, updated texts of which are due to be considered by a Diplomatic Conference scheduled to be held in Manila, Philippines, in mid-2010.

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BLRT rebuilds bunker vessels

The Estonian yard group BLRT Grupp has found a niche market – converting single-hull bunker vessels into double-hull vessels in accordance with MARPOL regulations.

‘The group’s yard, Tallinn Shipyard, recently rebuilt three Estonian bunker vessels, which now have double hulls. The vessels’ cargo capacity was reduced by some 18–20 per cent. BLRT is negotiating with Murmansk Shipping Company to rebuild the bunker vessel Kotlas and the waste disposal barge Randal.

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