Smit Lamnalco Receives First RAstar 3200 Tug for LNG Work in PNG

The new RAstar 3200 tug SL Jamba was recently delivered to its owners SMIT-LAMNALCO. Constructed at Cheoy Lee Shipyards, she will soon be joined by three more sister tugs for the same owner. These powerful tugs will assist berthing and unberthing of LNG carriers at new export facilities being developed in Papua New Guinea by the Exxon Mobil-led consortium, Papua New Guinea LNG.

These vessels have been outfitted with full accommodation for up to crew of 8. The Master’s and Chief Engineer’s cabins are located on the main deck, with three additional 2 person crew cabins on the lower accommodation deck. The galley and a spacious mess/lounge room complete the deckhouse arrangement.

The deck machinery comprises a ship-assist hawser winch forward, manufactured by C. Kraaijeveld and a radial type tow hook on the aft deck. In addition, a capstan is installed aft to facilitate line handling operations.
The wheelhouse is designed for maximum all-round visibility and provides maximum visibility to both fore and aft deck working areas.

Main propulsion for the RAstar 3200 class tugs consists of a pair of CAT 3516C HD high-speed diesel engines; each rated 2240 kW at 1800 rpm, and each driving a Schottel SRP 1515 controllable pitch Z-drive unit, in ASD configuration.

The electrical plant comprises two identical diesel gen-sets, each with a power output of 100 ekW, plus a small harbour genset.

Ship-handling fenders at the bow consist of one row of 1000 OD x 650 ID cylindrical fender at the main deck level, with 500 x 450 mm W block fenders between the main deck and the knuckle. Two 300 x 300 hollow ‘D’ fenders provide protection at the main and foc’sle deck sheer lines, and 500 x 450 W block fenders are used at the stern.

The unique sponsoned hull form of the RAstar Class tugs gives these vessels a level of crew safety and comfort that will enable operation in conditions previously deemed unworkable. The RAstar hull form, developed and used exclusively by Robert Allan Ltd., has been proven in both model and full-scale testing to provide significantly enhanced escort towing and seakeeping performance. The motions and accelerations are significantly less than those of comparable sized, wall-sided “standard” tug hulls.

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LNG World News Staff, December 12, 2013; Image: Robert Allan