The South African-built Damen Azimuth Stern Drive tug 3211, the 'Osayame' set sail from Cape Town Harbour in the last weekend of January 2010 and will shortly arrive in Port Harcourt.
The 'Osayame', meaning "God's gift" is the first tug of its kind to be built in South Africa by Damen Shipyards Cape Town, and its owner Starzs Investments, is the first indigenous Nigerian company to commission and own such a vessel.
The vessel flies Nigerian flag and is 100 percent Nigerian manned.
The 'Osayame's' owner, Greg Ogbeifun said that the vessel would be launched on February 12. It will be commissioned immediately thereafter into a five-year contract as a support vessel in the oil bunkering services of client Total Oil's Nigerian off-shore storage facility.
The 'Osayame' is a Damen-designed Azimuth Stern Drive tug 3211 has a bollard pull of nearly 70 tonnes from its 4,175kW Caterpillar engines. The Lloyd's Registered escort tug has full fire fighting and pollution control capability along with its towing, line handling and escorting functionality.
The Rolls Royce thrusters allow the tug to turn 360 degrees on its own axis giving ultimate manoeuvrability, particularly in the tight confines of a harbour.