Strategic delivers Ashmore Reef vessel to ACBP

JUNE 24, 2014 — The Australian Customs and Border Protection Service has taken delivery of the 40 m Ashmore Reef On-Station Vessel Thaiyak.

Built at Strategic Marine’s multi-purpose shipyard in Vung Tau, Vietnam, the Thaiyak is designed for flexible self-sufficiency and long term deployment at Ashmore Reef, an external territory of Australia 450 nautical miles East from Darwin in the Indian Ocean.

The vessel operate in the Ashmore Reef Marine Reserve and surrounding environmentally sensitive areas, acting as a deterrent for illegal activities and also serving as a platform for scientific and environmental research in these areas.

The order was awarded last year following a successful tender prepared between Gardline Australia Pty Ltd, Strategic Marine, and McAlpine Marine design Pty Ltd.

Among the vessel’s technical specifications are twin Caterpillar C32 970 kW main engines, twin Caterpillar C9 149 ekW generators and a 149 kW bow thruster.

The vessel is also fitted with two Norsafe davits capable of at sea launch and retrieval of two 7.5 m ship’s boats.  The vessel has a nominal draft of 2.4 m and beam of 11.5 m with an economical cruising speed of 10 knots and a top speed of 12 knots.

There are accommodations for 17 crew and 24 passengers, with a short term holding capability of an additional 25 passengers on sheltered deck space.

“The boat looks fantastic and it’s been a culmination of a lot of hard work on behalf of the project team – the Strategic team – and Gardline Australia, our partners in this project,” said Ian Laverock, ACBPS National Manager Maritime Capability.  

This is new territory for ACBPS, as it marks the first time the authority has commissioned a ship for commercial use outside of Australia.

“It’s been a good process in terms of separate stakeholder groups getting together using a standard Commonwealth procurement process and adapting to commercial shipbuilding processes for the Commonwealth,” said  Matthew Travers, ACBPS Project Manager, “and for Strategic Marine and Gardline’s understanding of Commonwealth’s methods and ways of doing business.”