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Boluda Towage welcomes Damen-built tugs in Europe and Africa
Spanish tug owner Boluda Towage took delivery of harbour tugboats built by Damen Shipyards in Q1 2026, to modernise its fleets in several countries in Europe and West Africa
Boluda Towage took delivery of harbour tugs built by Damen Shipyards in Vietnam in Q1 2026, to expand its fleets in several countries.
These reverse stern drive (RSD) and azimuth stern drive (ASD) tugboats were delivered to their home ports by Redwise Maritime Services following lengthy ocean voyages on their own keels.
VB Foxtrot and VB Fantastic, previously known as VB-048 and VB-049, arrived in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and VB Boluman (VB-047) was delivered to Tilbury in the Port of London, UK, at the end of February after being built to Damen’s RSD 2513 design at the Damen Song Cam Shipyard in Vietnam.
These 25-m, 353-gt tugs have a bollard pull of 80 tonnes, FiFi1 class firefighting systems and IMO Tier III-compliant propulsion incorporating twin Caterpillar diesel four-stroke engines driving two azimuth thrusters.
“Their delivery voyage required careful preparation and co-ordination across multiple regions and operational environments,” said Redwise.
The tugs were sailed across the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean, across the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, all under their own power.
During the transit through the Red Sea, Redwise enlisted security teams and co-ordinated with vessel insurers to enable safe passages. Off Portugal, VB-047 had to shelter from Storm Leonardo.
At the beginning of March, Redwise had delivered two Boluda harbour tugs, VB-651 and VB-652, both built in Vietnam to Damen’s ASD 2312 design, with shaft generators and energy optimisation systems on board.
After leaving Vietnam in January, they bunkered in Singapore before splitting up, with VB-651 heading to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, via Cape Town and VB-652 going to Rotterdam.
Redwise said they arrived at these ports despite VB-652’s route being impacted by Storm Dana off Spain, and VB-651’s voyage being affected by Cyclone Gezani between Port Louis and South Africa.
In Rotterdam, VB-652 was renamed VB Fenix. while VB-652 is thought to be renamed VB Fox.
In Norway, Boluda is preparing for the arrival of a newbuild harbour tug, currently under construction in Turkey, in Floro later this year to join two tugboats already stationed in the port.
The 28th International Tug & Salvage Convention, Exhibition & Awards will be held in Gothenburg, Sweden, in association with Caterpillar, 19-21 May 2026. Use this link for more details of this industry event and the associated social and networking opportunities.
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