Tugboat News

Today, a 'world first' was unveiled in the Port of Antwerp-Bruges: the Methatug, a tugboat which runs on methanol, part of a 'greening program' for the port's fleet. The project is financed by the European research program Horizon 2020 and is part of the FASTWATER project, which aims to demonstrate the feasibility of methanol as a sustainable fuel for the shipping industry.The 30-m-long tugboat has a traction force of 50 tons and can store 12,000 liters of methanol, enough for two weeks of tug work.

On 8 May 2024, KOTUG Canada Inc., a partnership between KOTUG International B.V. and Horizon Maritime Inc., held a keel laying ceremony for two RAsalvor 4400-DFM dual fuel methanol escort tugs – Robert Allan Ltd. design – to service the Trans Mountain Expansion Project, at Sanmar Shipyards Altinova in Yalova, Turkiye. The first tug is expected to be delivered by mid-2025.The tugboats are reportedly the first of their kind to be powered by methanol and are engineered to provide…

Sanmar Shipyards is delivering a new tug for Targe Towing in Scotland. Known as BIGAÇAY Xl while under construction, the tug was renamed Camperdown by its new owners, and was on its way to its new home port of Aberdeen.Camperdown is based on the exclusive-to-Sanmar RAstar 2900SX from Robert Allan Ltd., primarily intended for demanding escort operations in exposed areas.Measuring 29.4 x 13.3m with a 5.5m molded depth and 5.75m design draft, the tug can achieve a minimum of 85 tonnes of bollard pull ahead and astern.

Dutch shipbuilder Damen has presented the latest vessel in its Compact Tugs product platform – the ASD Tug 1810.Just over 18 meters long, the ASD Tug 1810 is capable of 30 tonnes of bollard pull ahead and 28 tonnes bollard pull astern.Like the other vessels in the range, the ASD Tug 1810 features clutter free decks.The ASD Tug 1810 also boasts the patented Damen Twin Fin skeg. Originally installed on the RSD Tug 2513, the skeg has now become a feature on all Damen's Compact Tugs.According to the company…

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group company christened and launched a salvage tug being built for Nippon Salvage Co., Ltd. The ceremony took place at the Enoura Plant of MHI's Shimonoseki Shipyard & Machinery Works in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The vessel, named Koyo Maru, is scheduled for handover to Nippon Salvage in June 2024 following completion of outfitting work and sea trials.Koyo Maru measures 80.6 x 15.5 m with gross tonnage of approximately 3,000.

ABS joined Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Seatech Solutions International and Shift Clean Energy in signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop electric tugboats, part of an initiative to achieve India’s goal of becoming the ‘Global Hub for Green Shipbuilding’ by 2030.The proposed E-VOLT 50 tug aims to reduce carbon emissions, improve operational efficiency and set new benchmarks for performance and environmental sustainability in the tugboat industry.GRSE will build the platform based on the design from Seatech, and Shift will provide energy storage solutions.

Svitzer announced the delivery of Svitzer Estelle, the second tug built as part of the company’s ongoing partnership with Uzmar Shipyards, based in Turkey.Svitzer Estelle is a Robert Allan Ltd. designed RAstar 3200W that will be deployed by Svitzer on the River Thames and the River Medway,bolstering the company’s operations in the busy Port of London. The first tug delivered by Uzmar Shipyards in May 2023, Svitzer Elizabeth, is currently in service in the Port of Liverpool. Svitzer’s partnership with Uzmar Shipyards began with the delivery of two tugs for the company’s fleet in Australia.

A third battery electric tugboat built by Sanmar Shipyards in Türkiye has been delivered to HaiSea Marine,Canada. Haisea Brave is scheduled to work in Vancouver alongside its sisters HaiSea Wamis and HaiSea Wee'Git before all three – along with two Sanmar-built LNG-fuelled tugs – are transferred to LNG Canada’s new export facility in Kitimat, British Columbia.HaiSea Marine is a joint venture majority owned by the Haisla Nation in partnership with Seaspan ULC, that will provide…

Sanmar Shipyards has delivered a compact general purpose Bozçay Class harbor tug to the Seychelles Ports Authority.Based on the exclusive-to-Sanmar RApport 1900SX design from Canadian naval architects Robet Allan Ltd, Mamelles is a diesel-powered tug designed for maximum efficiency in the performance of ship-handling duties for seagoing ships.Measuring 19.3m LOA with an 8.2m beam and maximum draft of 2.9m, Mamelles has conventional twin screw propulsion with twin nozzles and four rudders providing a bollard pull of 33 tonnes and excellent maneuverability.

Berg Propulsion has been selected to provide control and propulsion technology for what will be one of the largest hybrid tugs ever delivered, after owner Buksér og Berging AS (BuBe) agreed specifications with Turkey’s Uzmar Shipyard for its latest newbuild.Berg has been contracted to provide the full electrical power and control package for the Robert Allan-designed Rampage 4100BB-H tug, which will join BuBe’s North Sea operations in December 2024. Supply will include the electric motors…

Wabtec Corporation and Latin American Channel Partner, Marinsa International, signed a contract to supply the primary power for 10 new hybrid tractor tugboats for the Panama Canal Authority (ACP). Wabtec will deliver two 8L250MDA marine engines for each tugboat.“Wabtec is delighted to power the new hybrid Panama Canal tugs with the 8L250MDA marine engines,” said Tammy Gromacki, Wabtec’s Vice President of Marine, Stationary and Drill. “We are honored, through our partnership with Marinsa…

The three crew members of the SL Diamantina, who saved 21 lives and averted an environmental disaster in July 2022, have received an Exceptional Bravery at Sea commendation from the IMO.The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) nominated Brad Lucas (Master), Alex Alsop (Deckhand), and Marius Fenger (Engineer), for their extraordinary efforts in saving the lives of the crew on board the MV Portland Bay and preventing an environmental disaster on the shores of the world’s second oldest national park…

SEACOR Holdings said Monday it had agreed to sell its U.S. harbor towing operations and assets from its Seabulk subsidiary to two parties, E.N. Bisso & Son, Inc. and Bay-Houston Towing Co.The E.N. Bisso transaction includes 12 harbor towing vessels across ports in Florida and Alabama. Bay-Houston is acquiring eight vessels operating in Texas along the Sabine Neches Navigation District and in the Port of Lake Charles, La."E.N. Bisso and Bay-Houston are two industry-leading harbor towing providers supported by many decades of safe and reliable operations…

Bleecker Street Group (BSG), a global software holding company, announced the acquisition of Ripple, an integrated maritime software company. The acquisition underscores BSG's commitment to the maritime sector, solidifying its position as an emerging force in the broader Supply Chain Software industry.Ripple has earned acclaim for its mission-critical solutions designed to address unique operating challenges faced by maritime, and it has a long client list in the sector delivering to tugboat…

Towage and marine solution services firm Svitzer on Thursday launched the second phase of its project to design the world’s first methanol hybrid fuel cell (MHFC) tug.Svitzer, part of A.P. Moller-Maersk, has conducted technical studies to establish the feasibility of this type of vessel accommodating the real-world operational requirements of a tug. Work will now begin between Svitzer and naval architect company Robert Allan Ltd. to design the world’s first MHFC tug. The next phase will include work to complete the vessel design…

Contract signed with Uzmar to deliver TRAnsverse tugs following design collaboration between Robert Allan and SvitzerSvitzer, a part of A.P. Moller-Maersk, awarded a contract to Uzmar Shipyard to build two new TRAnsverse tugs for its Australian business.The TRAnsverse tugs are a tug design created in collaboration with Robert Allan Ltd, desgiend to deliver an estimated 10-15% reduction in fuel use and built to a specification that enables biofuel operations.When delivered, the…

A Russian court on the Pacific island of Sakhalin has ordered the provisional seizure of four tugboats belonging to Denmark's Svitzer, the world's biggest tugboat operator, at the request of a Russian energy company. Moscow has been seizing the assets of some Western companies which have left the country or are scaling back their business there in response to the conflict in Ukraine and Western sanctions. A court ruling dated April 24 said it had ordered the tugboats seized in response to a request by Sakhalin Energy…

HaiSea Marine, majority owned by Haisla Nation in partnership with Seaspan ULC, celebrated the naming and blessing of its tug boat fleet – which includes the world’s first fully electric harbor tug boat, along with dual fuel (LNG and Diesel) escort tug boats. Once delivered, the green fleet will provide ship-assist and escort towing services to LNG carriers calling at LNG Canada’s new export facility in Kitimat in the traditional territory of the Haisla Nation.Members of the Haisla Nation joined representatives from Seaspan…

Boluda Corporación Marítima, through its Boluda Towage division, has reached an agreement to acquire Smit Lamnalco, the world's fifth-largest towage operator.With the acquisition of Smit Lamnalco, Boluda Towage will boast a fleet of 600 tugboats with its tendrils reaching 50 countries and 148 ports around the world.Smit Lamnalco is 50% owned by Boskalis Group and Rezayat Group currently employing more than 1,600 people and owning 111 vessels."Boluda is a company that has never stopped growing and transforming itself," said Vicente Boluda Fos, Chairman of Boluda Corporación Marítima.

Glosten and ABB have teamed to develop a methanol-hybrid ship assist tug design. The "SA-100" is a 100-ft. ASD harbor tug—designed to measure under 100 grt—is propelled by two methanol compatible CAT 3512E gensets powering electrically driven L-drives. The gensets are complemented by battery banks for zero-emission operation when transiting, peak shaving during general operation, and as boost for achieving the tug’s peak bollard pull of 90 short tons.“We had three primary design objectives in developing this tug—all intended to benefit the owner/operator…

Inland waterways, sometimes called ‘nature’s superhighways’ provide a strategic advantage related to security, economics, and trade for any nation whose geography, topography, and climate enable this natural infrastructure. Economic benefits are realized in small rural areas through large urban communities that utilize the system for efficient transportation and improved markets. However, deliberate operational, resource, and policy efforts, along with broad stakeholder integration, are required to maintain and operate such a system.

Kongsberg Maritime’s US Series thrusters will be installed on 16 new ASD tugboats to be built in Turkey by Med Marine ShipyardKongsberg Maritime (KM) reports that it has signed "a sizeable contract" with Med Marine in Turkey to deliver 32 US series thrusters for installation on new Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD) tugboats.KM’s US series thrusters now offer project-specific Computation Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling capabilities, while the range of achievable propeller and nozzle combinations ensures the highest possible standards of operational efficiency.

Japanese classification society ClassNK has granted its Approval in Principle for NYK Line and IHI Power Systems's (IPS) ammonia-fueled tugboat currently being jointly researched and developed. This R&D is part of the Green Innovation Fund project within Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) for the development of vessels equipped with a domestically produced ammonia-fueled engine, adopted in October 2021 for NYK Line and IPS."Since carbon dioxide (CO2) is not emitted when ammonia is combusted…