First Vessel Expected to be Delivered in July 2024
SAL Heavy Lift and Jumbo Maritime have held a ceremonial first cut of steel in China to mark the start of construction of two of their new carbon-neutral, heavy-lift Orca Class vessels.
The two companies – which form the Jumbo-SAL-Alliance – announced the newbuild programme last year, placing an order for four Orca vessels with China’s WuHu Shipyard. The deal included an option for an additional two ships in the future.
The first of the series being built at the shipbuilding facility located on the Yangtze River has been dubbed W2231, and is expected to be delivered on 5 July 2024.
“After a long and extensive planning phase, our Orca newbuilding series has finally kicked off!” the companies said in a statement. “Already this week, the steel cutting for the second Orca newbuilding with the project name W2232 will be carried out on the shipyard. We are excited about the keel laying following in near future.”
The 150-metre-long Orca series, which have been developed in-house, are equipped with dual-fuel engines capable of running on fuel oil or methanol. The increased availability of green methanol at ports around the world will eventually enable the alliance to offer its clients carbon-neutral transport solutions, the companies said.
The vessels have a deadweight cargo capacity of 14,600 tonnes, and boast two, fully-electric 800-tonne Liebherr cranes capable of handling up to 1,600 tonnes in tandem. Ice class notation 1A, a Polar Code certification and the reduced design temperature of the hull and equipment allow the ships to safely operate in icy conditions.
The first two ships will be used exclusively for transporting offshore wind turbine components as part of a long-term deal with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
“The ships will be the most efficient vessels in their class with consumption and emission figures far superior to any existing heavy-lift vessel today,” said Martin Harren, owner and CEO of SAL Heavy Lift and its parent company, the Harren Group.
The Jumbo-SAL-Alliance, formed in 2021, operates a fleet of 30 advanced project cargo vessels with lifting capacities of up to 3,000 tonnes.
The alliance will be exhibiting at Breakbulk Europe 2023, taking place on 6-8 June at Rotterdam Ahoy in the Netherlands. Siemens Games is a member of the Breakbulk Global Shipper Network.
