A new set of state-of-the-art tugboats will ply the waters of Burrard Inlet next year, Seaspan International Ltd. announced Tuesday.
The North Vancouver company recently signed a contract with Turkey’s Sanmar Denizcilik Shipyard to build four ship assist tugs, the largest build commitment of a single class of vessels for the company in more than three decades.
Vancouver-based naval architects Robert Allan Ltd. designed the RAstar 28 m tugs, which Seaspan said will be among the most powerful vessels to sail B.C. waters and feature full firefighting capabilities.
“The benefits of a purchase of this type are numerous, including the rebuilding and modernization of our fleet and increased safety and capabilities for all ship escorts performed in the Vancouver harbour,” said Jonathan Whitworth, CEO of the Washington Marine Group of Companies, which includes Seaspan.
He went on to say that the port has an immediate need for more tugs to assist the growing number of tankers in Burrard Inlet.
“The increase in tankers that have been calling on the port have been requiring larger tugboats … to assist them,” Whitworth told Business in Vancouver.
He added that the province’s newly implemented HST coupled with the sliding Euro created a “golden opportunity” for the company.
“Because of these two factors alone we were able to increase the purchase size from an initial three boats to the eventual four boat order.”
Typically, tugboats of equivalent size cost between $15 million and $20 million each, a source said.
BIV last caught up with the Washington Marine Group in April when it teamed up with Thales Canada to bid for a contract to build six ice-breaking vessels for the Canadian Navy (See “North Vancouver shipbuilder signs agreement to bid for $2 billion navy contract ” – BIV Business Today, Thursday, April 15).