New dredgers have been delivered to a South African customer and two operators in the US. Construction meanwhile continues on vessels for operation in China and Russia.
Chinese state-run media outlet CCTV reports that two new large trailing suction hopper dredgers (TSHDs) in a series were launched at the facilities of Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries in Jiangsu province on Tuesday, August 26.
The TSHDs have been named Tongjun and Junguang. Upon completion, each dredger will have a length of approximately 198 metres, making them among the largest vessels of their kind to be built in Asia. Each will also have a maximum dredging depth of 120 metres.
Great Lakes Dredge and Dock (GLDD) announced on August 20 that it has taken delivery of its newest Jones Act-compliant hopper dredge, the Amelia Island, from the Conrad Shipyard in Morgan City, Louisiana.
The vessel measures approximately 346 feet (105 metres) in length, with a beam of 69 feet (21 metres), and has a hopper capacity of 6,330 cubic yards (4,840 cubic metres). It features two 800 mm trailing suction pipes capable of dredging to depths of up to 100 feet (30.4 metres). The dredge's main engines and generators are EPA Tier IV rated.
The Southern Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Centre, a division under Russia's state-owned United Shipbuilding Corporation, has begun conducting sea trials of a new dredger ordered by local shipowner State Transport Leasing Company (STLC).
As with other Project 93.159 dredgers owned by STLC, Lotos-4 will operated by Russia's Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transportation (Rosmorrechflot).
Ellicott Dredge Enterprises of Baltimore recently delivered a new remote controlled electric dredger to an unnamed customer in Alaska.
The dredger will be operated in support of activities at a wastewater treatment plant.
The dredger can remove sludge in even layers using a horizontal auger cutterhead that creates an even bottom profile. This allows a pond to be brought back to full storage capacity without the need to re-dredge, which is a common problem with hanging pump dredgers.
Cape Town, South Africa-based Guerrini Marine Construction has taken delivery of a new dredger built by Dutch company Royal IHC.
The dredger is currently tasked with the removal of approximately 364,000 cubic metres of organic sludge and fines from the bottom of a 250-hectare freshwater lake in Cape Town.
To support longer pumping distances, Royal IHC also installed and commissioned a booster, enabling material transport over 2.7 kilometres to the discharge site.