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Singapore-based shipbuilder Strategic Marine has commissioned a series of three new crew transfer vessels with a maximum speed of over 53 knots, the fastest of their kind in the world. Each vessel is powered by four 16-cylinder engines from Rolls-Royce and will be used by an undisclosed national oil company in Africa for passenger transfer to offshore platforms and FPSOs. The 35-meter-long surface effect ships use air-cushion technology within a catamaran hull form. This design was used for the first time in the offshore oil and gas industry. The boats have an optimized power-to-weight ratio and use fans to generate an air cushion between the hulls that minimizes hull drag and resistance. That way, the vessels can travel at much higher speeds than conventional monohulls and catamarans, with consumption remaining at the same per hour of operations. “Our goal in building these crew transport vessels was to minimize the water resistance at the hulls and maximise the cruising and top speed of the ship. The 53-knot top speed during the sea trials demonstrates that we were successful in building and commercialising this technology for offshore crew transfer applications,” said Chan Eng Yew, CEO of Strategic Marine. |
