A major builder and designer of tugs, offshore support vessels, inland vessels, naval and merchant ships, Damen received more than 50 orders for tugboats for delivery in 2023-2024, much of which will be built at its shipyards in China, Vietnam and the Netherlands. ITS asked Damen a series of questions concerning its views on the latest trends in tugboat design and construction and what it will present to delegates at the ITS Convention 2024 in Dubai, in May.

What trends and developments do you see shaping the future of the global tug and salvage industry?

Further developments in renewable fuels, mostly on the engine designs as well as adopting the ship designs for the renewable fuels and battery-powered tugs. There is a demand, however we need to ensure the vessel fits the operational profile and check if the local infrastructure is ready for the charging system. Nevertheless, the RSD-E Tug 2513 is already able to operate in ports where the grid infrastructure is not ready yet, but will be in the near future.

What is coming in tug, pusher boat and towage vessel designs?

The ability for vessels to operate on methanol fuel is one. In Q1 2024, we will introduce our new vessel type, the compact, multipurpose and powerful azimuth stern drive ASD Tug 1810. We will finish the construction of five fully electric reverse stern drive RSD-E Tugs 2513 for stock and start developing a new fully electric tug design.

Do you have any exciting announcements, updates, or case studies to share with the tug and salvage community?

Damen will be presenting a paper during the ITS 2024 in Dubai with the topic Fuel flexible tugs and commercially viable decarbonisation. Fuel flexible designs allow tug owners to continuously balance fuel cost, fuel availability and emissions reduction throughout a vessel’s lifetime. The paper takes a case study approach to demonstrating how switching between different fossil fuels, biofuels and e-fuels during the service life of a tug can support a commercial and technically feasible pathway to decarbonisation.

Why did your company decide to sponsor this international event? What are you hoping to achieve?

As a market leader, this is an important event for us where we can discuss ongoing developments with (potential) customers as well as presenting ongoing research projects.

How will you be engaging with attendees during the conference? Are you showcasing any new offerings?

Damen is organising a golf tournament and an Albwardy Damen shipyard visit, showing one or more Damen tugs during the tug presentation and of course networking during the lunch, coffee breaks, welcome reception and gala dinner. On the Damen booth we will show our latest vessels designs: the ASD Tug 1810 and our sustainable tugs portfolio: electric and fuel-flexible tugs.

What has Damen been working on for electric/battery-powered tugs since delivery of ITS 2022 Tug of the Year: Sparky?

We have worked on a new fully electric tug design, which will be announced soon. For the design, we have updated the electrical components to be able to achieve a higher power output in a smaller size system. We are continuously monitoring the development of new batteries as well as the ability to do high-power charging.