When Virtu Ferries had the new Maria Dolores delivered by Austal in 2006, the Malta-based owner might not have expected to exceed its newly increased cargo capacity on the Malta-Sicily route within three years – but that is exactly what happened. “We reached the predicted 2015 cargo figures in 2009, as the market grew over and above our expectations,” says Francis Portelli, managing director of Virtu Ferries. “We needed additional space for TIR (Transports Internationaux Routiers) trucks, and this prompted us into placing an order for a new, larger vessel.”
Virtu has benefitted from a market requirement for cargo movement at high speed, which was not available before the arrival of Maria Dolores. As Mr Portelli points out, “Previously, trucks were travelling on conventional ferries which took 10 to 12 hours to reach Malta from Sicily – and it was not a daily service like ours, either.” When Malta joined the EU in 2004, this also stimulated cargo transportation to and from the island.
The biggest vessel of its type in the Mediterranean, Jean de la Valette has space for 800 passengers and 156 cars (or 45 cars and 342 truck lane metres) at a service speed of 38.5 knots. There is also accommodation for 24 crew members. The ferry is fitted with four MTU 20V 8000 M71L main engines, each of 9,100kW at 1,150 rpm; these drive four Kamewa 125SIII waterjets through ZF 53800 NR2H gearboxes. Davit International supplied the davits for the DSB rescue boat.
With a maximum deadweight of 850 tonnes, the vessel has a vehicle deck clear height of 4.6m in the centre lanes and 4.35m in the side lanes. Maximum fuel capacity is 512 tonnes and the catamaran has a range of 3,100nm.
International Maritime Services conducted the sea trials, providing the master, chief engineer and chief officer for the duration. According to Mark Oswald, IMS’ trials master, “I was very impressed with the design and quality of the vessel. The ship was very easy to handle.” Jean de la Valette went into service at the beginning of October, replacing its predecessor, Maria Dolores, which will move to an as-yet undetermined operation, possibly an existing Virtu Ferries route in the Adriatic Sea.
As Virtu had had previous, positive experience with Austal, it was no surprise that the firm turned to the Australian shipyard again in 2009 for a new vessel. “There was a possibility of obtaining an ‘on spec’ vessel which was nearly complete,” says Mr Portelli, “but we chose Austal because we needed a ferry which was built specifically for our own requirements.”
According to Austal’s chief operating officer, Andrew Bellamy, “The Austal model is to customise each product for a specific route, a specific client. There is so much extra value which can be brought to an operation if a ferry is constructed with a specific requirement in mind; for instance, the owner will not be burning more fuel than needed, and there will be no excess capacity.”
Developing the design was a collaborative process between Austal and Virtu. “We had already built the 68m Maria Dolores in close co-operation with Virtu, so we did not have to spend any time building up a relationship. We just got on with the job and it was very much a team effort,” says Mr Bellamy. “The team that Virtu had on the ground and the way we have been able to work together has resulted in a ferry which we and Virtu are really proud of.”
Virtu Ferries specified that the 106.5m Jean de la Valette, the largest built in Australia to date – although shortly to be surpassed by a new Nordic Ferry Services vessel being built at the same yard – should have a luxurious feel. “We could have accommodated many more passengers on board for the volume, but that was not what Virtu wanted. The company wanted to create something quite special.” notes Mr Bellamy.
“Austal always builds an excellently engineered product but we paid specific attention to the feel of the passenger experience to create something memorable as part of the journey. There are many light flowing lines, and the open staircase to the upper passenger deck looks almost like the entrance to a grand ballroom!”
The passenger experience has this time been further enhanced with the addition of a Bitzer air conditioning system. “There are larger windows for a more expansive view than might be seen on some vessels, which has implications for the air conditioning,” comments Mr Bellamy. Virtu also specified a dedicated lounge for truck drivers, fitted with fully reclinable Georg Eknes-supplied seats.
“We insisted on this area in order to give truck drivers sufficient comfort through the voyage,” says Mr Portelli. “Most of them are doing daily return trips, so they need to be able to rest on board in comfortable surroundings.” Jean de la Valette additionally features two exterior passenger seating areas, one on the Club deck and one on the Euro Class deck.
The cargo side of the business will benefit from the fact that DNV has classed the vessel to carry dangerous goods such as LPG, benzene and diesel. “We did not have this capability on Maria Dolores and it gives us a substantial advantage over conventional ferries which can carry these type of products but only call in on Malta three times a week,” suggests Mr Portelli.
Conditions on the Valletta to Pozallo route posed some challenges. “The wind can reach force 8 or 9 on occasions, though not very often,” says Mr Portelli. “While we do not expect to be sailing in those conditions, and force 6 is more frequent, we needed a vessel that could comfortably operate in that sort of weather.” The solution found for this issue was to fit Austal’s next generation ride control system, with a substantially larger T-foil arrangement.
“The ride control system measures real-time accelerations on the hull using advanced motion detector sensors,” says Mr Bellamy. “The acceleration data feeds into the sophisticated algorithm at the heart of the computer control system, which predicts the vessel’s response to waves. Those predictions instantly adjust the foils and interceptors to the correct angles to compensate for the each wave as it arrives, so a smoother ride can be obtained. We have around 10 years worth of data to enable the system to be optimised for those typical conditions.”
In addition to being fitted with a stern ramp, Jean de la Valette also required a portside ramp for loading trucks, a feature specific to the harbours served. “We had to fit out the terminals with larger, specialised shore ramps,” explains Mr Portelli. “The vessel has a substantially higher tunnel height and higher freeboard and so we bought a ramp for Pozallo which once was used by a high speed vessel serving Trelleborg in Sweden.”
The sheer scale of the hull proved to be an issue which the Austal yard had to work around. According to Mr Bellamy, “The vessel was bigger than our hall! We constructed it using our unique modular manufacturing process, fabricating blocks then fitting them together. We had to bring the hull out of the hall before we could add the wheelhouse superstructure using using two cranes; it had to match up within only millimetres of tolerance and this level of accuracy was a challenge.”
There have been some landside changes in Malta to support arrival of the new vessel. In mid-September, Virtu transferred from its previous passenger base in Valletta to a new, dedicated terminal. However, the main building is still under construction, with completion expected by the end of this year.
“The previous terminal was never adequately developed as a ferry base,” said Mr Portelli. “It was a jetty that a cruise terminal operator had inherited from the government some years back, so we were not as efficient as we would have liked to be. We will run this new terminal, so the turnaround times and passenger handling should improve.” PST
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