Meriaura Group News

Finnish shipping company Meriaura, part of Meriaura Group, announced that general cargo ship M/V Friendland (DWCC 4450 t) has joined its fleet.Friendland (built 2002) has dead weight/volume ratio (7200 m3) and is therefore a welcome addition to the fleet, because the need for cubic tonnage is growing.Friendland has wide breadth (15,0 m) that makes her suitable also for carrying logs and timber, as well as project cargoes.The 2002 built vessel is time chartered long term from a partner, whose vessels Meriaura already has in its fleet."Our fleet consists of modern and versatile dry cargo ships and newly-built multipurpose deck cargo carriers designed for project and special cargo," said a press release from company.

Wastewater streams aboard the two state-of-the-art EcoCoasters Dutch shipyard Royal Bodewes is building for Finland’s VG-Shipping will be managed by a bespoke treatment system designed by ACO Marine. Both 4700dwt EcoCoasters Eeva VG and Mirva VG, due to be delivered this autumn to VG-Shipping, the ship management arm of the Meriaura Group, feature MEPC.227(64)-compliant Clarimar MF-1 treatment plants. Sacha Uittenbogaart, Sales and Marketing Manager with Technisch Bureau Uittenbogaart, ACO Marine’s Netherlands distributor, added: “Both vessels feature systems and technologies designed to reduce substantially the environmental impact of ship operations.

NavCom and On Board ICT specialist Radio Holland informs it has booked multiple orders in a challenging newbuild market. The company was awarded contracts to deliver and install the complete NavCom and VSAT packages for four newbuild vessels: two of the Meriaura Group and two of Eureka, part of SMT Shipping, all built at Royal Bodewes in Hoogezand, The Netherlands. “We have completed many successful projects with Radio Holland and are happy to work with them on these four new vessels,” said Johan Schouwenaar from Royal Bodewes.

Newbuild M/S Eeva VG, the first of two very energy efficient dry cargo carriers managed by VG-Shipping, was coated with Ecospeed at the end of January ahead of her July 2016 delivery. Both new ships are VG EcoCoasters and will operate in the Baltic region. They are owned by Meriaura Group of which VG-shipping is a part. The vessels were designed as a new ship concept by Meriaura together with its partners Foreship Ltd and Aker Arctic Technology Inc. and are engineered to reduce environmental impact.

Thordon Bearings’ Swedish distributor, Duwel Sweden, has signed a contract with Caterpillar Propulsion for the supply and installation of Thordon COMPAC seawater lubricated propeller shaft bearing systems to the two general cargo ships Dutch shipyard Royal Bodewes is building for Finland’s Meriaura Group. Each state-of-the-art 4700 dwt VG EcoCoaster, designed by Meriaura Group together with partners Foreship and Aker Arctic Technology, will feature COMPAC bearings, a Thordon Water Quality Package and a forward shaft seal in order to exceed current and anticipated environmental regulations.

Hull form optimization and hydrodynamic design contribute to fuel consumption savings to be achieved by a new generation coastal general cargo ship. Finnish owner Meriaura Group signed for two 4,700DWT Ice Class 1A VG EcoCoasterTM general cargo newbuilds at Dutch yard Royal Bodewes in mid-January, with the first due for delivery at the end of July, 2016. According to Foreship , hull form and machinery optimization are expected to almost halve fuel consumption compared to conventional dry cargo vessels of similar type and size, in turn making a significant impact on fuel emissions.

Godmother of the vessel, Minister of Transport Merja Kyllönen, gave the ship the name “Meri”. The festive event held on the outfitting dock of the shipyard was witnessed by representatives of the client Gaiamare Ltd, the classification society Bureau Veritas and  STX Finland, as well as numerous other guests. The multipurpose vessel MS Meri, scheduled for delivery to the client in summer 2012, is 105.4 metres long and approximately 18.8 metres wide. This modern and environmentally friendly deck cargo vessel, designed for global operation, can be utilised for a wide variety of tasks. When delivered, she will be able to operate as a transport vessel for demanding project cargo such as offshore wind farm structures and for energy wood transport in the Baltic Sea area.

Metso has been awarded major automation system contracts for 3 advanced vessels to be built in Finland. One contract is for 2 Multifunctional Icebreaking Supply Vessels (MIBSV) by Arctech Helsinki Shipyard Oy for Russian Sovcomflot. The second is a Multipurpose Deck Cargo Carrier by STX Finland Oy for Finnish Gaiamare Ltd. belonging to Turku based Meriaura Group. The MIBSV’s are designated for the Sakhalin-1 Arkutun-Dagi gas field and will be used as supply vessels for the Exxon Neftegas Ltd gas platform. They are designed for the harsh environmental conditions in the Sakhalin area with drifting ice and temperatures down to minus 35°C.