Iskes Towage & Salvage has increased its ship handling capacity in the Netherlands by adding a new azimuth stern drive (ASD) tug to its fleet
Jupiter was built by Damen Song Cam Shipyard in Hai Phong, Vietnam, to an ASD 2312 tug design. It was ordered in July 2018 and delivered on 25 May.
It operates in the ports of IJmuiden and Amsterdam where it carries out regular port towage duties and handles crane barges.
Coronavirus made delivery of this new ASD tug from Vietnam to the Netherlands challenging. Damen amended its delivery planning as this tug was intended to sail on its own keel to the Netherlands but travel restrictions made this difficult.
The alternative was transporting the tug on a heavy lift ship. However, internal travel restrictions in Vietnam also meant the vessel could not be transported to Ha Long Bay to meet the heavy lift vessel, so the heavy lift vessel had to collect the tug closer to the yard at Hai Phong and transport Jupiter directly to Ijmuiden.
“This ASD 2312 tug is a compact vessel with a very high degree of manoeuvrability, required for operating in the ports of Amsterdam and Ijmuiden,” said Iskes chief executive Jim Iskes.
Jupiter has an overall length of 23 m, beam of 12 m and bollard pull of 60 tonnes, which is ample power for handling vessels at these two ports. It also has a towing winch integrated into the superstructure to enable it to tow ships either from the bow or stern.
Damen included a twin fin into the hull design to improve directional stability and shatter-proof glass on the wheelhouse for protection in the event of a towing line snapping.
It also built Jupiter so it would be ready to be retrofitted to meet IMO Tier III emissions requirements. To comply with these forthcoming regulations, Iskes would need to install a Damen selective catalytic reduction system.
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