The Vympel Design Bureau of Russia's state-owned United Shipbuilding Corporation has unveiled a new series of pusher tugs optimised for use in inland waters.
The Project 1741NG vessels will be developed to replace Russia's ageing fleet of more than 400 inland pusher tugs. The vessels' duties will primarily entail pushing and towing of non-self-propelled dry cargo and tanker barges.
The Project 1741NG tugs will be designed as modernised variants of the Project 1741 vessels developed by Vympel Design Bureau in the 1970s. Key features will include automated systems that would permit smaller crew complements to be embarked on each tug.
The new tugs will each have a beam of 9.3 metres, a draught of only 1.5 metres, space for eight crewmembers, two 260kW main engines, and a maximum endurance of 20 days. They will also have the same 33 metres LOAs as their predecessors, allowing them to work with the existing fleet of river barges.
Each Project 1741NG tug will have its fuel tanks installed separately from the outer hull plating to ensure compliance with Russian Classification Society requirements.