Flensburg shipyard cuts steel for Canada’s largest ConRo

OCTOBER 19, 2012 — Representatives from Canadian short sea shipping specialist Oceanex Inc. were in Flensburg, Germany last week for the cutting of first steel for Oceanex Connaigra at shipbuilder Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft. The newbuilding will be the largest Canadian flag container/roll on roll off (ConRo) ship. The twenty knot, ice-class vessel is designed for world-wide trade and will be 210 meters in length with a deadweight carrying capacity of 19,500 metric tonnes.

Oceanex Executive Chairman, Captain Sid Hynes, says that construction of the ship represents an investment of more than $100 million and “demonstrates Oceanex’s commitment to meeting the needs of our customers throughout Eastern Canada and particularly the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Oceanex Connaigra has been designed to meet the company’s anticipated growth for the next 30 years.”

Flensburger Schiffbau President and CEO Peter Sierk says “the vessel will be one of the most modern, innovative, environmentally friendly and adaptable ConRo ships in the world. Leading the industry, this eco friendly vessel will be equipped with a dry scrubber exhaust gas cleaning system for main engines and diesel generators and thus exceed the requirements of the proposed restrictive air emissions regulations. In fact, the vessel is classed by DNV as a ‘clean ship,’ which confirms a higher environmental standard, particularly with respect to air emissions.”

The ro/ro weather deck of the Oceanex Connaigra is designed for a conventional lift-on/lift-off containership operation and is able to accommodate all relevant sizes of containers, including the Oceanex high cube 53 ft units — with a weather-deck load capacity of 11,000 metric tonnes of containers. Liftable ramps provide access to all five ro/ro decks which allow for the transportation of up to 95 tractor trailers and 500 automobiles. The ship is designed with a 40 ft wide stern ramp to accommodate over dimensional loads that can weigh several hundred tonnes. Captain Hynes says this is critically important to the construction and development projectsthroughout Atlantic Canada.

The addition of a side ramp and starboard side door promotes more efficient and faster loading and unloading of automobiles.

This state-of-the art vessel is equipped with leading edge technology, such as the latest generation engines using a common rail fuel management system to provide high efficiency and smokeless operations. With the extreme weather conditions of the North Atlantic, three passive anti-roll stability tanks and a gyro controlled active fin stabilizer system have been added to ensure cargo safety and crew comfort along with the highest quality European standard accommodation for the ship’s crew.

Delivery of the Oceanex Connaigra to the Newfoundland service is expected in the fall of 2013 at which time it will join the current Oceanex fleet composed of the MV Cabot, the Oceanex Sanderling, and the Oceanex Avalon.