More and more authorities are specifying Rolls-Royce ship designs and equipment for coastguard and anti-pollution vessels.
Maritime states are increasingly aware of threats to their coastlines and exclusive economic zones (EEZ). The nature and seriousness of the threats varies from state to state. They may include fisheries control and prevention of illegal fishing, emergency towing of ships with engine or steering failure which represent a pollution hazard if they drift ashore, and pollution control and clean up should the worst happen. In addition come a host of other
coastguard functions.
Some countries prefer to split their various coastal protection and EEZ management functions among different types of vessel. One type which has come into prominence focusses on emergency towing, pollution control and
oil spill recovery. Over the years, Europe has suffered several major oil spill incidents which have caused grave environmental damage, economic loss and public outcry. The Torrey Canyon and Amoco Cadiz alerted Britain and France to the risks. More recently the Braer incident in Shetland and the sinking of the tankers Erica and Prestige off the French and Spanish coasts have also encouraged governments and authorities to have more and better equipment available. The risk is not just from tankers. A few hundred tonnes of heavy bunker fuel can cause havoc along the coastline as the Rocknes and Server incidents in Norway show, and large container ships with large quantities of bunkers are a potential hazard, demonstrated by the
MSC Napoli casualty on the Channel coast of England.
Rolls-Royce has built up extensive experience in designing and equipping vessels to tackle these various tasks. The ships are stable and efficient working platforms and provide safe and comfortable living conditions for the crew. In each case the design is accompanied by a package of Rolls-Royce equipment and systems.