TSHD Meuse River Launched

The trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) Meuse River, built for DEME Group at the Royal IHC shipyard in Krimpen aan den IJssel, is launched.

The launch ceremony of the the 7,950m³ vessel took place at IHC’s shipyard in Krimpen aan den IJssel, the Netherlands.

"Meuse River has the same innovative design as the award winning IHC-built TSHD Scheldt  River, which joined the DEME fleet in 2017 and since then operated non-stop on waterways and access channels in Europe," said a press release.

Meuse River features several energy smart technologies, developed by DEME and IHC, such as a hybrid dredge pump drive system to reduce the effect of load variations.

For automation of the dredging process, IHC developed the intelligent IHC ECO automation package, which results in high dredge performance. Additionally, fuel efficiency is achieved with two-speed propulsion and combinator mode, optimising fuel consumption in sailing and dredging conditions.

The vessel will reinforce the DEME fleet in 2020.

Luc Vandenbulcke, CEO of DEME said: “With our multi-year investment program, we aim to operate the most technologically advanced fleet in the industry. We want to make sure our fleet is futureproof by continually pursuing enhanced productivity and efficiency goals. Building on the success of our pioneering trailing suction hopper dredger Scheldt  River we can provide our customers with an identical, versatile and highly efficient vessel for a wide range of dredging activities.”

Dave Vander Heyde, CEO of Royal IHC said: “We are proud that after we’ve successfully delivered Scheldt  River to DEME, we’ve reached this milestone for Meuse River – another IHC-built TSHD prefitted to be capable of operating on LNG. The partnership with DEME has proven to be successful in the past, and we are pleased to continue our partnership with them by adding more value and technical capabilities to their advanced fleet.”