Southern African Shipyards News

Transnet National Ports Authority has redeployed a new tug to the Port of Cape Town, as Tug UMBILO went into service recently after being redeployed from the Port of Durban.Built in 2017, UMBILO was the sixth of nine new vessels to roll off the production line as part of $95 million tug construction contract being executed by Durban ship builder Southern African Shipyards. The Port of Cape Town also took delivery of tug USIBA last year, originally intended for the Port of Richards…

Subsea and offshore solution provider Unique Group announced that its Marine & Subsea division has entered into a high value contract with the Southern African Shipyards to provide a turnkey package for hydrographic survey vessels and hydrographic office set up.The project will include multiple new build vessels - main vessel and support vessels. Unique Group will act as a technology partner to the shipyard and provide the vessel’s dynamic positioning systems and Navigational equipment package.

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) celebrated a twin milestone for its KwaZulu-Natal ports as part of its R1.4 billion ($106.3 million), nine-tug construction contract. On Thursday, 22 August the new USIBA tug was christened and named ahead of its delivery to the Port of Richards Bay, while the Port of Durban took delivery of its Umbilo tug which had been launched and named in May. The vessels are the sixth and seventh respectively to roll off the production line on time and within budget. All nine tugs are being built by Southern African Shipyards in Durban.

Offering the Vard Marine 9 105 Hydrographic/Oceanographic Survey vessel design, Southern African Shipyards, located in Durban, S.A. has been selected as the preferred bidder for the South African Navy Project “Hotel” program. This is a continued success for Vard Marine in designing science vessels. Vard Marine partnered with the shipyard to develop a design for the program and the final configuration results in a PC7 ice strengthened vessel of 95M in length with approximately 12.24MW installed diesel electric power plant and a maximum speed of 18 knots. The vessel has a 10,000nm range with 44 days endurance; incorporates the latest hydrographic and oceanographic sensor suite and will be manned by a total crew of 120 persons comprising ships’ crew and scientists.

Transnet National Ports Authority’s (TNPA) R1.4 billion tug building contract in Durban continues to create jobs and develop local marine capabilities, with the fifth of the authority’s nine new tugs launched this morning in Durban. The project is now 81% complete and still on track to deliver the ninth and final tug early in 2018, on time and within budget. Five tugs are under construction at any given time at the premises of contractor, Southern African Shipyards. Four are already delivered and at work in Port Elizabeth and Saldanha.

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) is on track with its $100m tug building contract and celebrated the ceremonial launch of the fourth of its nine new tugs being built in Durban. The tug – named OSPREY in honor of the fish eagle – will serve at the Port of Saldanha. In line with maritime tradition, the duty of officially naming the vessel was carried out by Lady Sponsor, Thandeka Mabija, who earlier this month was appointed General Manager for Human Resources at TNPA. TNPA Chief Operating Officer…

The latest of Transnet National Ports Authority’s (TNPA) nine new tugboats has set sail from the Durban premises of contractor, Southern African Shipyards, on Thursday, July 7, destined for its new home at the Port of Port Elizabeth. The tug was ceremonially launched as Qunu in May alongside a third tug, Cormorant. Qunu was named after the Eastern Cape home village of former President, the late Nelson Mandela and is due to arrive in Port Elizabeth on Friday, July 8. She is the second of two new tugs built for the port as part of this large-scale fleet replacement project.

The South African government’s Operation Phakisa: Oceans Economy initiative has yielded more results with the ceremonial launch of two more tugboats built for Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA). The two tugs – named Qunu and Cormorant – form part of TNPA’s R1.4 billion contract awarded to Durban ship builder, Southern African Shipyards. It is the largest single contract TNPA has ever given to a South African company for the building of harbor craft and will see a total of nine new tugs built for the South African port landlord over three and a half years.

The first of Transnet National Ports Authority’s nine new, powerful tugboats set sail from the Durban premises of contractor, Southern African Shipyards, on Saturday, April 2, destined for its new home at the Port of Port Elizabeth. The tug was ceremonially launched as MVEZO last October. It arrived in Port Elizabeth in the early hours of Monday, April 4. Port Elizabeth port manager, Rajesh Dana, said, “The arrival of MVEZO in the Eastern Cape is particularly significant given that the tug was named after the small village in our province where former President…

ASRY appointed Charles Maher as the new General Manager (GM) of the Ship Repair division, effective January 4, 2016. Maher brings more than 15 years worth of corporate and hands-on technical shipyard experience at Dormac Marine & Engineering, Grand Bahamas Shipyard, and Southern African Shipyards. He will lead the newly restructured Ship Repair division of ASRY. Maher’s appointment will overlap with the outgoing Ship Repair GM, Magdy Sharkawy, who retires in February, to ensure a comprehensive transition of the role and a seamless client handover.

Transnet National Ports Authority announced a milestone in its $98 million tug building contract when the first of its nine new tugboats was launched at the Durban premises of contractor, Southern African Shipyards. “This is the largest single contract TNPA has ever awarded to a South African company for the building of harbor craft,” said TNPA chief executive, Richard Vallihu. The tug was named ‘MVEZO’ in reference to the small village in the Eastern Cape of South Africa where former President, the late Nelson Mandela, was born.

Construction work on nine tugboats for Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) at the Southern African Shipyards premises in Durban is well under way. "This is a milestone project that reinforces the capacity and skill of South Africa when it comes to competing in the global shipbuilding industry," said Eugene Rappetti, senior manager for Marine Operations at TNPA. "Despite the challenges of energy disruptions, the project team is forging ahead and has made impressive progress, with around 11% of the fabrication and construction on the project completed thus far," he said. The project kicked off in August 2014 and is set to provide a big boost to the local economy over its 42 month lifespan. It includes the manufacture of one of the world’s largest and most powerful harbour tugs.

Transnet National Port’s Authority’s R1.4 billion contract to produce nine powerful tugboats is progressing on time and within budget at the Southern African Shipyards premises in Durban. “This is a milestone project that reinforces the capacity and skill of South Africa and indeed Durban when it comes to competing in the global shipbuilding industry,” said TNPA program manager Eugene Rappetti, Senior Manager for Marine Operations. “Despite the challenges of energy disruptions…

Southern African Shipyards (SAS) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China Shipbuilding Trading Company (CSTC), a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, in a union between the largest shipyard in Southern Africa and the largest shipbuilding group in the world. Operation Phakisa was launched by President Jacob Zuma in 2014. One of its two key focus areas is to develop South Africa’s maritime economy in sectors such as marine transport and manufacturing and offshore oil and gas.

Del Mar Marine Corp. based in Miami, Florida, was appointed in May as shipyard agents by the following yards: Dalian Daeyang Shipyard Co., Ltd. (China),  Guangzhou CSSC-Oceanline-Gws Marine Engineering Co., Ltd. (China), Ilyichevsk Shiprepair Yard (Ukraine), Industria Naval del Pacifico S.A. de C.V. (Mexico) and Southern African Shipyards (PTY) Ltd. (South Africa), also their affiliated company Del Mar Panama S.A. based in Panama was appointed as shipyard agents by Zhanjiagang Jiu Sheng Shipyard Co. Ltd. (China).

Siemens, a subcontractor to Southern African Shipyards, will build five tugs  for Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA.)  The company says it will establish a fully functional electrical facility in the shipbuilding yard at harbor in support of the project.   The Siemens contract includes the design and installation of 15 km of cable and the installation of the radar, communication and alarm monitoring systems.  This is the first time in that five boats are being built in tandem.  The first tug, destined for Coega, is expected to be launched in July 2009. Source:  Engineering News