C280 News

Jeffersonville, Ind. based American Commercial Barge Line (ACBL) on Tuesday announced it has signed a contract with Belle Chasse, La. shipyard C&C Marine and Repair to build a 11,000 horsepower (HP) class towboat.Designed by Portland, Maine-based CT Marine, the twin-screw towboat will measure 198 feet long, with 50-foot beam and 12-foot depth. With accommodations for a crew of up to 12, the vessel incorporates a floating, spring-mounted superstructure for additional onboard comfort.

Kenya Port Authority's new tug,  Mwokozi II, was delivered to her home port of Mombasa on January 10, 2022.The Mwokozi II is a custom design 42-meter, 120 tonne bollard pull RAstar 4200 salvage and harbor tug developed by Robert Allan Ltd., with particularly outstanding performance in maneuvering, seakeeping, and stability.The Turkish shipbuilder Med Marine was contracted to build the new tugboat at its group owned Eregli Shipyard. The keel was laid on March 23, 2020, and construction…

Spain's Baleària will convert three ferries from diesel to LNG dual fuel using Caterpillar and MaK solutions.Incorporating the MaK DF engines will virtually eliminate the sulfur and particulate matter in the exhaust gases, while also cutting down NOx, resulting in even lower CO2 emissions. The three ferries to be converted are Abel Matutes, Bahama Mama, and Martin i Soler, each currently equipped with a pair of MaK 9 M 43 C main engines. After the conversion, the vessels will operate on two MaK 9 M 46 DF engines, which has a rated engine output of 8,685kW.

PT Pelabuhan Indonesia III (Persero) has taken delivery of the first eight, of a total 15, RAzer ASD tugs designed by Robert Allan Ltd. The two RAzer 2960, two RAzer 2935 and four RAzer 2940 tugs are part of a major terminal expansion and fleet renewal program undertaken by Pelindo III in its operational territory. The RAzer 2960s and RAzer 2935s were built by PT Daya Radar Utama Shipyards in Jakarta, Indonesia, and the RAzer 2940s were built by PT Dumas Tanjung Perak Shipyards in Surabaya, Indonesia. These will be the first Robert Allan Ltd. tugs to be designed specifically to operate from major ports in Indonesia, including the new container port of Terminal Teluk Lamong, near Surabaya.

Marine News showcases the best of North America’s 2017 workboat deliveries. There is something for everyone. Notwithstanding the lingering offshore energy downturn, there were plenty of bright spots for North American shipyards in 2017. If a hull was delivered in 2017, we took a look at it, with several areas as a focus for inclusion into this edition. For starters, it is always exciting when a domestic yard delivers a vessel – or multiple vessels, for that matter – to foreign buyers. We can compete in a foreign arena; on price, quality and on-time delivery. This year was no different. No less important is the environmental footprint of a vessel, and there was plenty to report on from that angle in the past 12 months. The domestic waterfront is indeed getting greener and cleaner.

In October of 2014, news of Oceaneering’s purchase of GE Transportation’s newest marine engine offering was making waves. These engines – ones which meet EPA Tier 4i and IMO Tier III Emissions standards – without the need for a Selective Catalytic Reduction system (SCR) exhaust gas after-treatment, had workboat operators everywhere looking at new possibilities. Before that, Harvey Gulf International Marine also entered into a contract to construct a new Multipurpose Field Support Vessel (MPFSV) at Eastern Shipbuilding, this one also powered by GE’s Tier 4 compliant, EGR main engines. That’s important because Harvey Gulf, the recognized North American leader in rolling out LNG and dual fuel propulsion vessels, in this case, selected a pure diesel engine.

Nicole Foss, the final of Foss’ three new state-of-the-art Arctic Class tugs designed to operate in the extreme conditions of the far north, was christened last week at the Foss Waterway Seaport in Tacoma, Wash. The vessel was built at the Foss Rainier, Ore. shipyard and will enter service this summer. Foss president and CEO John Parrott made opening remarks, praising the hard work and dedication of the people, designers, and customers that made the project possible. Scott Merritt, chief operating officer of Foss also spoke, praising the team at the Rainier Shipyard.

Two affiliates of Louisiana-based Edison Chouest Offshore (ECO) have signed a five-year contract with Shell Brazil for light subsea construction, and inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) services from the M/V Island Enforcer, a 402-ft. subsea installation and construction vessel. According to ECO, the agreement includes a varied list of projects featuring vessel services from ECO affiliate Bram Offshore, and ROV and survey services from C-Innovation. The all-inclusive contract also includes installation…

Foss Maritime said its third of three new Arctic Class tugs being built at the Rainier, Ore. shipyard is nearing completion and expected to enter service later this year. The tug Nicole Foss is ice class D0, meaning the hulls are designed specifically for polar waters and are reinforced to maneuver in ice. Like her sister Arctic Class vessels, it complies with the requirements in the ABS Guide for Building and Classing Vessels Intended to Operate in Polar Waters, including ABS A1 standards, SOLAS and Green Passport. Two short videos show construction from April of 2016 to January 2017.

As the oil industry awaits a much-needed rebound, Foss Maritime’s robust presence in the Arctic region underscores its commitment to the region, the environment, and a business plan that looks ahead to the next chapter. Reports of the death of commercial Arctic activities have been greatly exaggerated. While Arctic energy projects have, by and large, been put on the back burner – like most things related to energy in other places – there are still many projects ongoing; and still others being planned.

The second of three new state-of-the-art Arctic Class tugs, the Denise Foss, was christened June 1, 2016 at the Foss Waterway Seaport in Tacoma, Wash. Built at the Foss Rainier, Ore. Shipyard, the Denise is designed to operate in the extreme conditions of the far north, and will enter service this summer. Foss COO John Parrott conducted opening remarks. Parrott applauded the hard work and dedication of the people, designers, and customers that made this project possible. He also introduced Denise Tabbutt…

Caterpillar Marine now offers its Cat C280 medium-speed diesel engines for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier 4 and International Maritime Organization (IMO) Tier III service. The EPA Tier 4 standards applied to all new U.S. flagged vessels starting in January 2014 and IMO III standards will apply to all new vessels entering IMO NOx Emissions Control Areas (NECA) starting in January 2016. The C280 engines are available in eight-, 12- and 16-cylinder models spanning a power range from 2…

Marine engineering teams from diesel power specialist Royston Limited have carried out the overhaul of turbochargers on two offshore supply ships operated by Tidewater Marine in the oilfields off the coast of South West Africa. Royston said its engineers completed the full overhaul of Napier NA297 turbochargers on the Melton Tide firefighting and offshore support vessel and the success of this work led to more recent service work being undertaken on the Netherland Tide, multipurpose support vessel.

Foss Maritime Company is wholly owned by Saltchuk Resources, a privately owned family investment company formed in 1982 and based in the Pacific Northwest. Saltchuk has over $2 billion of assets invested in numerous operating companies in several different business groups, including deep water shipping logistics, ship management, tug and barge operations, fuel distribution and trucking. Foss regularly partners with its sister companies in the Saltchuk portfolio to offer a diverse range of maritime transportation services.

The first of three Arctic Class tugs being built at the Foss Rainier, Ore. Shipyard was christened Thursday, April 9, at the Foss Waterway Seaport in Tacoma, Wash. The vessel, the Michele Foss, will see its first assignment on an oil field sealift this summer from South Korea to the Alaskan Arctic. Mike Magill, Vice President of Foss' Technical Services, made opening remarks at the christening, praising the hardworking men and women who constructed the vessel. "As we know, a construction project of this magnitude requires significant teamwork to accomplish," Magill said.

The latest delivery from Australian shipbuilder Incat Tasmania Akane, an 85 metre high speed Wave Piercing Catamaran Ferry, Incat hull 068, will arrive in Japan early April. Built at the Incat shipyard at Prince of Wales Bay, Hobart the vessel was sea trialled late   March, and has departed Hobart on her delivery voyage. The vessel will go into service in April with Sado Kisen, a long standing ferry operator in Japan. Akane will operate from the Niigata and Naoetsu ports on the west coast of Japan to the Sado Island ports of Ogi and Ryotsu.

Edison Chouest Offshore has selected Caterpillar Marine's Cat Tier 4 Final C280-16 generator sets for two new vessels, Caterpillar announced today. The generators are the marine industry's highest horsepower Tier 4 solution, as well as one of the largest diesel electric propulsion (DEP) configurations in company history. Four Cat C280-16 generator sets, each rated at 5060 bkW @ 900rpm will power each vessel, which are being constructed at Edison Chouest’s La Ship shipyard in Houma, Louisiana.

When Marathon Petroleum wanted to repower its inland river towboats, the company turned to its Cat dealer Whayne Power to get the job done. Marathon had installed Cat 3606 engines on the inland waterways vessels in the early 1990s, and twenty years later was ready to repower three towboats with the successor to the 3600 engine series, the Cat C280. Starting in December 2013, Whayne Power worked with Marathon to repower the three vessels with Cat C280-6 engines, each rated at 2,548 bhp at 900 rpm. “Marathon Petroleum has been a proud Cat customer for decades and had great success with the reliability and durability of the Cat 3606 engines since the initial installation of the engines,” Lincoln Turnage, Whayne Power marine account manager noted.

Caterpillar Oil & Gas announce the successful delivery of the 100th offshore generator set featuring Brazilian local content from the company’s Piracicaba, Brazil manufacturing facility. The 100th unit, a Cat 3512 Diesel Electric Propulsion (DEP) Generator Set was packaged, tested and certified with an industry-leading level of Brazilian local content per ANP standards. In recent years, Caterpillar has aggressively invested in the Piracicaba facility to enable the world’s leading power solutions provider to offer a wide range of main power…

Caterpillar Marine and Power Systems was one of the most active companies at the 2013 International Workboat Show in New Orleans, debuting several new products that are compliant with EPA Tier 3 and 4 regulations, and finalizing the acquisition of propulsion equipment manufacturer Johan Walter Berg AB. Caterpillar Inc., which is one of the biggest names in industrial equipment, engines and turbines, recorded 2012 sales revenues of $65.9 billion. Contributing to that sum is Cat’s globally-operating subsidiary…

Implications on U.S. The next round of emission regulations will bring significant impacts to the design, construction, and operation of U.S. commercial and government vessels starting in 2014. The impending EPA Tier 4 regulations directly apply to high and medium-speed diesel engines used in workboats, ferries, small cargo ships, and government vessels. These regulations represent the most significant reduction of marine emission levels to date, specifically in the form of nitrogen oxides (NOx). Natural gas fueled engines present one path to compliance, but not the only path.

The first engine platforms to be rolled out as Tier 4 solutions are two legendary performers in the commercial marine industry: the Cat 3516C marine engine as well as the Cat 280 marine engine. The C280 engine will be available as Tier 4 certified in both the 8 and 12 cylinder configurations. The Cat 3516C Tier 4 certified engine as well as the Cat C280-8 Tier 4 certified engine and Cat C280-12 Tier 4 certified engine are now all available for customers to order through the global Cat dealer network. The Cat 3516C Tier 4 certified engine will be available in ratings of 2,240 bkW and 2350 bkW at 1,800 rpm. An auxiliary or diesel electric propulsion solution is available in a 2,250 ekW (2368 bkW) rating.

Cat C280-16 generator sets with an increased power rating have been selected by Jurong Shipyard, to power West Rigel drill rig. The West Rigel is a semisubmersible drilling rig newbuild under construction for North Atlantic Drilling Limited, a subsidiary of Seadrill Limited. Eight C280-16 generator sets, each with rated power of 5,500 ekw (5,730 bkw @ 900 rpm), will be used as the main power for the semisubmersible rig, with two of the generator sets serving as emergency power as well. The C280 has a stellar reputation in the oil and gas industry as a trusted provider of power for decades. The new uprate provides a 12% increase in overall power.