Cheoy Lee delivers tug quartet for Oman LNG terminal

OLNG Sur

JANUARY 9, 2015 — Hong Kong shipbuilder Cheoy Lee Shipyards has delivered four more Robert Allan design RAmparts 3200CL tugs to Singapore’s PSA Marine Qalhat SAOC. They follow the December 2013 delivery by the builder of PSA Marine’s first ever RAmparts 3200CL tug, the Rubicon.

PSA Marine Qalhat SAOC is a joint venture between PSA Marine and Golden Dunes International,  and has a ten year contract from Oman LNG LLC, Oman’s only LNG exporter, to provide towage services in Oman, from January 11, 2015.

The four latest RAmparts 3200CL tugs — OLNG Sur, OLNG Seeb, OLNG Masirah and OLNG Muttrah — are similar to their predecessors in this design series, with modifications to suit the owner’s requirements for operations at the LNG terminal in the Port of Qalhat in Oman.

This particular RAmparts 3200CL version of the well-proven Z-drive tug designs developed by Vancouver, B.C., based Robert Allan has been developed from a successful prototype  series of vessels, refined for a more shallow draft, and has been successfully constructed by Cheoy Lee Shipyard for many owners.  

The RAmparts 3200CL design is available in a typical ship-handling configuration with a modest size of skeg, or in an “escort” configuration with a much deeper skeg for enhanced indirect steering force capability.Particulars of the OLNG Sur, OLNG Seeb, OLNG Masirah and OLNG Muttrah series of tugs are as follows:

Length overall                  32.0 m
Beam, molded, extreme    12.4 m
Depth, molded (hull)           5.4 m
Maximum draft                   4.9 m

On trials, the typical performance result for this series of tugs was as follows:

Bollard pull, ahead               70 t
Bollard pull, astern               65 t
Free running speed, ahead    13 knots

The vessels are outfitted to the high standard for a crew of up to 10 people.  

The deck machinery comprises a forward hawser/anchor winch, aft towing winch, towing hook, and a deck crane.The wheelhouse is designed with forward and aft control stations providing maximum visibility to both fore and aft deck working areas.

Main propulsion for each tug is provided by a pair of Caterpillar 3516C HD diesel engines; each rated 2,000 kW at 1,600 rpm, and each driving a Schottel SRP 1515 fixed-pitch Z-drive unit, in ASD configuration.

The electrical plant features two identical diesel gensets, each with a power output of 112 ekW.

Ship-handling fenders at the bow comprise two rows of 800 mm x 400 mm OD/ID cylindrical fenders with 480 mm x 300 mm “W” block type fendering below.  Two 300 mm x 300 mm hollow “D” fenders provide protection at the main and forecastle deck sheer lines, and 500 mm x 450 mm “W” block type fendering is used at the stern.