On 24 January 2012, Dutch shipbuilder Damen Shipyards delivered three Cutter Suction Dredgers of its CSD 500 series to the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) in Azerbaijan.  After delivery, President Ilham Aliyev and Minister of Emergency Situations Kamaladdin Heydarov examined the dredgers at the premises of the Yacht Club in Baku. Damen representatives briefed the President and his party on the functions and features of the CSD 500 and on the expanding production programme of the Damen Shipyards Group.

Kura River

MES ordered the three Damen dredgers to avoid repetition of the events that occurred as result of the Kura River bursting its banks in previous years. The CSDs will be used to clean-up, deepen and maintain the Kura River water system. The three vessels come from a successful and long-standing series of cutter suction dredgers designed according to the Damen principles of standardization and continuous research & development.

CSD 500

The dredgers can work up to a maximum dredging depth of 14m and are able to pump 4.000 m3/h of water/soil mixture per hour. They are outfitted with a large number of options to enhance dredging efficiency, safety and comfortable working conditions for the vessel’s crew. Amongst them are day and night accommodations, anchor booms and spud carriage pontoons. A full communication package, dredge pump performance monitoring instrumentation and a position visualisation Navguard system are installed in the spacious operating cabin. In addition, Damen will supply basic spare parts and training for the crew and dredge masters.

Due to Damen’s philosophy of series production and delivery from stock it was possible to build, outfit, deliver and commission all three dredgers within six months after the contract became effective. The three dredgers will shortly be moved to Nefchala, where the crew will be trained. Afterwards the dredgers will commence their work at three different locations on the Kura River: Nefchala, Salayan and Sabirabad.

Specifications:

DELIVERY DATE:                                          October 2011

BASIC FUNCTIONS:                                    Maintenance dredging
CLASSIFICATION                                         Bureau Veritas sheltered area

DREDGING FEATURES
DREDGING DEPTH                                     14 m

DREDGE INSTALLATION
DREDGE PUMP TYPE                               BP5045MD
DIAM. SUCTION/DISCHARGE PIPE 550/500 mm
CUTTER TYPE                                              5-1625 (with changeable chisels)
CUTTER POWER                                        180 kW

ENGINE INSTALLATION

DREDGE PUMP DIESEL                          Caterpillar 3512B

CONTINUOUS POWER RATING        954 kW @ 1600 rpm
AUXILIARY DIESEL                                  Caterpillar 3406-DITA JWAC
PRIME POWER RATING                        345 kW @ 1800 rpm
HYDRAULIC INSTALLATION              driving cutter, winches and spuds
ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION             24 Volt DC and 230/400 Volt AC, 34 kVA

PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS
LOA INCL. LADDER                                  49.10 m
LENGTH OVER PONTOONS                36.50 m
BEAM                                                               7.95 m
DRAUGHT                                                     1.00 m

Image (c) Lisa Haug

CAMERON, LA – The Dredge Bayport, operated by Manson Gulf, LLC, was dredging in the Calcissieu Ship Channel on 30 March when they struck a 12″ condensate and natural gas pipeline.  Damage to the pipeline resulted in a highly flammable “fountain” of gas and condensate erupting from the surface of the ocean.

The following is the press release from Marine Safety Unit Lake Charles:

Incident Summary: At 2030 on 30 Mar, while conducting dredging operations in the Calcasieu Ship Channel, the dredge BAYPORT struck a sub-soil 12″ gas/condensate oil pipeline causing a breach in the line and a visible
“fountain” of natural gas & condensate at the water surface.

Location: 29-37-54N, 093-19-20W; near buoy #28 in the Calcasieu Ship Channel, approx 10 miles south of Cameron jetties.

MSU LC contacted El Paso Energy platform in West Cameron Block 62 (~ 1 mile east of the spill site).  They noted that the product was likely theirs as they had witnessed a slight drop in pressure in their discharge line (1000
psi down to ~ 960 psi).  The platform was shut in at approx 2200.  Shortly thereafter, pressure in the pipeline decreased to 750 psi.  Initially, there was concern that the downstream check valve in the line was not holding, causing back pressure from the other platforms and lines that feed the main trunkline.  However, pressure in the pipeline has decreased steadily over the past several hours to its current reading of 290 psi (as of 0300), indicating that the check valve is holding.  Additionally, BAYPORT has been monitoring the “fountain” with its radar and has noted that the signature is now barely visible.

Pipeline details:   12″ high pressure natural gas/condensate oil mixture line.  At normal operating pressure of 1000 psi, the pipeline typically produces 34.5 million cubic feet of natural gas per day and 230 barrels of condensate oil per day.  The condensate has an API gravity of 47 degrees (very light).  The pipeline has a 12 mile run between the rig in West Cameron Block 62 and the check valve and sub-sea shut-in valve in West Cameron Block 44.  The residual pressure in this 12 mile run must be released for the spill to stop.

Pipeline is owned by Stingray Enbridge.  They have assumed the role of responsible party and activated their incident management team.  O’Briens is the spill management contractor.  OSRO resources have been activated through Clean Gulf.

Estimate of spill volume: Based on max capacity of the line and a full-line breach w/unrestricted flow, the maximum discharge of hydrocarbon which would produce a sheen on the water (condensate only) over the previous 6 hours would be 60 barrels.  This is an upper bound.  We anticipate less than this amount as the pressure in the line has been significantly less than 1000 psi since the production rig was shut in at 2200.

Current actions: Continue to monitor pressures in the line.  AM overflights to assess pollution impact.  RP has established an incident command post at the O’Briens facility in Slidell.  MSULC has 1 rep at the command post, others to arrive in the AM.

Future actions:  RP has helo overflight scheduled for 0730 out of Lake Charles w/MSULC mbr onboard.  USCG fixed wing sched to depart out of Mobile, AL at 0800 w/Strike Team mbr onboard.  Stingray Enbridge is sending a dive boat out to WC Block 44 to manually close the sub-sea shut in valve.  This will complete the shut-in process.  ETA is noon.  Two Clean Gulf fast response boats are on standby w/4 hour onscene time to be activated as needed for spill cleanup.

Waterways impact: Calcasieu Ship Channel has been closed in the vicinity of the spill site with a 2 mile safety zone.  3 inboard and 2 outbound deep draft vessels are currently delayed.  Anticipate maintaining safety zone
until final shut-in is complete by the dive team and confirmation of no further gas/condensate discharge at the spill site.

Van Oord Dredging became well know for their work laying the dirt for Dubai’s palm islands but their latest accomplishment is steel cutting on a new dredge design, their, yet to be named, self propelled suction cutter. Maritime Executive gives us the details on this innovative ship design:

With a total installed power of some 24,000kW, the vessel is equipped with two on-board dredge pumps and one submerged dredge pump on the cutter ladder. The maximum dredging depth is 28 metres. Its length over all is approximately 130 metres and its beam is 27.8 metres. The accommodation can house 44 people.

Innovative design
The cutter suction dredger is characterised by its high level of reliability and its robust construction. In addition to state-of-the-art components and materials, a large number of innovative and sustainable systems are also used:
• New-generation hydraulic flexible spud carriage to increase workability
• IHC Cutter Special pumps for excellent suction power and efficient mixture transport
• Flexibly designed engines and a flexibly designed deck house to provide comfort in the accommodation and wheelhouse
• Environmentally friendly systems and accreditations, including the “green passport”

The vessel complies in all respects with the latest, more stringent regulations on emissions.

Click HERE for more details from MAREX.

(Note: We made an error, the above photo is of the EXPLORER II)

In breaking news the BBC tells us;

More than 150 tourists and crew have been rescued off Argentina from an expedition ship, after it hit ice.

The M/S Explorer began listing close to King George Island in the Antarctic Ocean, near the South Shetland Islands.

Susan Hayes, of Gap Adventures, which owns the ship, said some 100 passengers and 54 crew members were evacuated to lifeboats and then to another ship.

She said the vessel left Ushuaia on Argentina’s southern tip on 11 November on a 19-day trip to the Drake Passage.

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said it was informed at 0524 GMT on Friday of the incident involving the 2,400-tonne vessel. read more…