Freire Shipyard in Spain has floated out a new freezer trawler ordered by Canadian seafood company Qikiqtaaluk Fisheries Corporation (QFC).
Upon completion, Saputi II will have a length of 79 metres, a beam of 17 metres, and hold space for 800 tonnes of shrimp or 1,200 tonnes of turbot. The trawler has been built with heavy ice-class and was designed by Norwegian naval architecture firm Skipsteknisk for operation in severe climatic conditions in Baffin Bay in the Arctic.
Saputi II will also boast increased processing capacities with 750 tonnes for shrimp and 1,100 tonnes for Greenland halibut, compared to 580 and 900 tonnes, respectively, for QFC's earlier vessel Saputi.
The newer vessel will be equipped with state-of-the-art automated systems to carry out catching, sorting and cooking, freezing and robotic palletising processes. Freire Shipyard said this will maximise the efficiency of work shifts, improve working conditions for the crew, and preserve product freshness.