Catamaran Technology News

Australian shipbuilder Austal said it has started construction on a 109-meter high-speed catamaran ferry Express 4 for Molslinjen of Denmark, with the first plate-cutting conducted at Austal’s shipyard in Western Australia. Molslinjen Chairman, Frantz Palludan officially initiated the aluminum plate cutting for Austal’s largest commercial ferry project since 2011 and the largest commercial ferry by volume in the company’s 28 year history. Palludan was joined by Soren Jespersen…

Kelvin Hughes, a designer and supplier of navigation and surveillance systems, announced that its SharpEye radar is now in continuous use on the world’s fastest ferry, operating between Argentina and Uruguay. Launched in Oct 2013 by the President of Argentina, Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, and operated by Buquebus of Uruguay, the ferry, named Francisco after the Argentinian-born Pope Francis, carries up to 1024 passengers and crew together with 150 cars on a daily basis between Buenos Aires and Montevideo.

Managing the risks associated with a new ship acquisition, whether commercial or military, can be a daunting process. For the commercial operator, the new ship must make a reasonable profit after the cost of design and the annual operating costs are accounted for. The warfighter must fit his new acquisition into ever-shrinking fiscal budgets while ensuring that a vital mission capability is met. Programmatic Risk – Will the selected hull form and associated requirements successfully meet the owner’s needs?

'Yankee Freedom III', a 34m Catamaran Ferry, was developed in partnership with Yankee Fleet and Gladding Hearn Shipbuilding. The new vessel, designed to provide exceptional passenger comfort and minimal environmental impact on the local environment,  will take over the company’s daily run from Key West to Dry Tortugas National Park and Fort Jefferson, previously serviced by the Incat Crowther designed Yankee Freedom II. To achieve the regulated environmental and passenger comfort criteria…

All American Marine, Inc. and Teknicraft Design, Ltd. have successfully made a proposal to Kitsap Transit to bring a new passenger ferry to Rich Passage. On Tuesday, April 21st, the commissioners of Kitsap Transit unanimously approved $5.3m for the purchase of a 77 ft ultra-low wake Teknicraft catamaran and on May 18th, All American Marine received the signed notice-to-proceed. The high speed passenger catamaran will carry 118 passengers and operate between Bremerton and Seattle, Washington at speeds of 29 to 38 knots.

Newly delivered to The Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) is the T&T Spirit (Incat hull 060) which has emerged from Incat's Hobart shipyard sporting a white hull with the Trinidad & Tobago national colours of red, white and black on its sides. An interior seated dining areas lounges and bars has been provided and to tempt Caribbean travelers to the T&T Spirit’s birthplace interior bulkheads are adorned with scenes of Tasmania. The PATT also recently purchased the Incat 91 metre Wave Piercing Catamaran The Lynx in a $21m deal with Australian owner Allco Finance Group. Renamed T&T Express, that ferry, which was once well known for its eye catching black Devil Cat livery, has also been painted with the national colours of Trinidad & Tobago.

The government of Trinidad & Tobago has purchased its second Incat Wave Piercing Catamaran in as many months. The former US Army Theatre Support Vessel Spearhead (Hull 060) has been purchased from its Delaware, United States based Owners, Bollinger / Incat LLC. To that end the four-year-old fast ferry, to be renamed T&T Spirit, is currently being refitted for passenger service after a well documented career with the US Army. When she emerges from her refit at Incat’s Hobart shipyard T&T Spirit will be sporting a new white hull along with the Trinidad & Tobago national colours of red, white and black on its sides. Recently, the Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) purchased the Incat 91 metre Wave Piercing Catamaran The Lynx in a $21m deal with Australian owner Allco Finance Group.

New aluminum catamaran technology is being introduced into the U.S. Virgin Islands, where they are embracing the catamaran concept. The Virgin Island Department of Planning and Natural Resources/Police has placed in active service its first aluminum catamaran, manufactured using patented-protected technology, by Mission Marine, Ltd., in Sandusky, Ohio. The boat is based at the DPNR/Police facility in St. Thomas. The Mission 338 has the capability for extended offshore patrol and is a multi-agency craft that serves a variety of missions including DPNR, Police/Law Enforcement, Fisheries, SAR, Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement, and Port Security.

The Virgin Island Department of Planning and Natural Resources/Police has placed in active service its first aluminum catamaran, manufactured using patented-protected technology, by Mission Marine, Ltd., in Sandusky, Ohio. The boat is based at the DPNR/Police facility in St. Thomas. The Mission 338 (29’7” x 11’5”) has the capability for extended offshore patrol and is a multi-agency craft that serves a variety of missions including DPNR, Police/Law Enforcement, Fisheries, SAR, Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement, and Port Security. What makes this catamaran unique is its rough water capabilities for use offshore; its wide beam and advanced design affords extra stability and ride.

As a resounding endorsement of its long-term commitment to shipbuilding in the U.K., Vosper Thornycroft (VT) has created a state-of-the-art ship production facility within Portsmouth Naval Base. Having recently attained preliminary operational status through steel cutting on 295-ft. (90-m) transport barge, the 33-acre naval shipbuilding yard is set to play a key role in the construction of the Royal Navy's next generation of destroyers while extending VT's overall build capabilities and market reach. It has been some decades since Britain last saw the opening of a new yard of any significant size, and VT's initiative ensures a future for the industry in southern England.