Maersk subsidiary Svitzer has expanded its fleet with a new azimuth stern drive (ASD) tug prior to starting operations in the Port of Emden
ASD tug Svitzer Vestri was built in Turkey to support Svitzer’s expansion of German operations into the port of Emden and will be deployed in Svitzer Europe’s Germany and Scandinavia cluster.
It will primarily support towage and docking of ships in Emdem, a major roro and automobile transportation port, from 1 January 2021 and may also be mobilised to support other towage operations throughout the Scandinavia and Germany cluster as part of Svitzer’s flexible operating model.
“This new tug’s versatility and power makes it an ideal addition to our fleet, particularly as we embrace a new challenge in 2021 by commencing operations in Emden,” said Svitzer managing director for Scandinavia and Germany Mattias Hellström. “Svitzer Vestri will help underpin operations in one of Europe’s largest roro hubs,” he said.
This is a MED-A2360 series tug design from Turkish shipbuilder Med Marine, built to a Robert Allan design with 62 tonnes of bollard pull. According to Tug Technology & Business’ records, this tug has Caterpillar main engines driving Kongsberg azimuthal thrusters.
Svitzer said Svitzer Vestri’s design makes it compact yet robust, “enabling greater manoeuvrability without compromising on power, even within narrow and shallow ports.”
This is important for towage operations in Emden where there are unique geographic challenges including its outer and inner ports and harsh weather conditions during northern hemisphere winter months.
Svitzer will continue modernising its Scandinavian fleet in 2021 with delivery of two ice-class harbour tugs of TundRA 3000-design being built by Med Marine in Q1 2021.
These were designed to tackle a range of environments across Svitzer’s Scandinavian operations.
This addition comes just weeks after Emdener Schlepp-Betriebe added new ASD tug Peter Wessels to its fleet in Emden. This tug, designed and built by Damen Shipyards, has 63 tonnes of bollard pull and MTU Series 4000 engines.
Emden is primarily a base port for the Volkswagen Group and Europe’s third-largest automobile transhipment centre after Zeebrugge and Bremerhaven.
Tug operations, design and construction will be discussed during Riviera’s series of webinar weeks and virtual conferences in 2021 - use this link to discover what is coming in December 2020
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