Svitzer Europe will strengthen its operations in London with a new harbour tug to handle ultra-large container ships

The Maersk subsidiary has contracted Damen Shipyards Group to supply a new azimuth stern drive (ASD) tug by the end of March 2021. Damen will use one of the tugs designed and built for its own stock to deliver this request.

When this ASD tug arrives, it will be named Svitzer Thames and deployed to assist some of the world’s largest container ships into terminals in the estuary including London Gateway.

This tug will be based on Damen’s ASD 3212 tug design and have 80 tonnes of bollard pull, an overall length of 32.7 m and beam of 12.85 m.

“Svitzer Thames is a particularly welcome addition to our London fleet, enabling us to upgrade and improve our service in one of Europe’s most crucial ports,” said Svitzer Europe managing director Lise Demant. “Its delivery comes at a perfect time to support our ambitions of even greater service quality and growth for the new decade.”

Svitzer Thames will be equipped with both power and manoeuvrability. Damen ASD 3212 tugs have total power of 5,050 kW and maximum speeds of 13.5 knots.

Svitzer UK South managing director Maurice McKeating said in the hands of Svitzer’s capable crew, Svitzer Thames will be able to handle the very largest of container vessels calling at the Port of London.

“We are looking forward to adding Svitzer Thames to our London fleet at the end of Q1 this year,” he said. “Svitzer Thames’ capabilities make it ideally suited to service the range of vessels that call at the Port of London, and particularly the increasingly large container vessels delivering cargo to one of the UK’s busiest ports,” said Mr McKeating.

Svitzer provides towage services as part of AP Moller-Maersk. It has around 4,000 employees, a fleet of more than 450 vessels and operations all over the world. Port of London is one of its biggest operations in Europe.

Damen builds multiple harbour tugs of various design at its shipyards in China, Vietnam and the Netherlands for its own stock, ready for onward sale and for specific owner requirements.

(Source: Riviera by Martyn Wingrove)