Cheoy Lee Shipyards built this harbour tug to Robert Allan Ltd’s iconic design for Mongla Port Authority in Bangladesh
In February 2024, Hong Kong-headquartered Cheoy Lee Shipyards completed its 50th harbour tug to Robert Allan Ltd’s exclusive RAmparts 3200-CL design and it has arrived at its home port. Both Joymoni and sister tug Keel Komol were built in China and are now operated by the Mongla Port Authority in Bangladesh.
Their completion was a milestone in RAmparts tug construction following a decade of this design being refined.
These 493-gt, 32-m tugs with 70 tonnes of bollard pull, will support other tugboats currently operating in Bangladesh’s second-largest, busiest port, which only have 40 tonnes of bollard pull, to handle large ships docking at terminals and quaysides.
Mongla Port Authority inaugurated these tugs 15 February, when chairman Shaheen Rahman said, “With the addition of 70-tonne bollard pull tugboats, it will be possible to move large commercial ships arriving at Mongla port quickly and safely to the port jetties. With this, a new horizon has started in the capacity of Mongla port in overall ship handling.”
RAmparts 3200-CL design tugs have been built since 2011 for vessel owners including Svitzer, Boluda, SAAM Towage, PSA Marine, Kotug International, Ocean Sparkle and Adani group. The first, Ocean Pioneer, was delivered to Ocean Sparkle in India in 2011.
They operate in regions all over the world, including Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America.
Robert Allan says the “hullform was developed to provide a high performance, multi-function tug in a shallow draught configuration, with a bollard pull of up to 85 tonnes.
Over the years, there have been significant changes to rules and regulations that have required the design to be updated, such as changes to IMO’s Maritime Labour Convention MLC concerning crew accommodation requirements, and legislation supporting structure for towing systems and towing stability criteria.
Robert Allan kept the RAmparts 3200-CL design compliant with the new regulations to ensure owners could be confident of the tug’s suitability for many operating scenarios.
RAmparts 3200-CL can carry out harbour services, terminal towage, ship escorting and offshore support functions. “All major engine manufacturers, Z-drive suppliers, deck machinery makers, etc can be fitted, allowing full customisation for owner’s needs,” says Robert Allan.
Delivery of Keel Komol and Joymoni came after Cheoy Lee Shipyards delivered four new tugs to Svitzer Australia and several tugs to owners including South China Towing, PSA Marine, Kotug International and Tanzania Port Authority in 2023.
Since February, the shipbuilder has also delivered the first of at least four escort tugs it is building for BHP and Svitzer to handle huge bulk carriers at the iron ore export terminals in Port Hedland, Western Australia. Iron Quail is a RAstar 2800-CL tug with a 28-m escort-class winch on the forward deck and a FiFi1 off-ship fire-fighting system.
It has hybrid mechanical propulsion with two main engines generating 4,700 kW of power driving two Schottel SYDrive-M thrusters to provide a bollard pull of 80 tonnes and a top speed of 13 knots.
Svitzer ordered these vessels from the shipyard after it won a contract in 2023 from BHP to provide five tugboats to escort dry bulk carriers into Port Hedland for at least five years.
When these tugs are delivered, they will replace older vessels to enhance the capability of the 17 tugs currently working in the port.
The 27th International Tug & Salvage Convention, Exhibition & Awards will be held in association with Caterpillar in Dubai, UAE, 21-23 May 2024. Use this link for more details of this industry event and the associated social and networking opportunities; and this link to book your ticket for the exhibition, social gatherings and awards night.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.