Sulnorte Maritime Services has taken delivery of SN Caraíva, completing a three-vessel tug construction programme at Rio Maguari Shipyard in Brazil.
The 23-metre azimuth stern drive (ASD) tug was named at the Port of Rio de Janeiro in early September. It has more than 75 tonnes of bollard pull and is intended for harbour towage involving larger ships.
Following mobilisation to Santos, SN Caraíva joined sister tug SN Cariri in assisting vessels entering the port.
“SN Caraíva was designed to offer high operational efficiency, safety in manoeuvres and robustness in operations of greater complexity,” Sulnorte said. The company said the delivery supported its plan to invest in higher-performance vessels for Brazil’s main ports.
The three tugs are based on a Robert Allan Ltd design and were built to American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) class. They have a moulded beam of about 11 metres and a hull depth of approximately four metres.
Each vessel has FiFi1 off-ship firefighting capability, with two Caterpillar diesel engines powering its Kongsberg Z-drives. Sulnorte’s fleet listing records SN Caraíva and SN Acaraú at more than 75 tonnes of bollard pull and 5,635 bhp each.
SN Cariri is listed by the operator in the 60-tonne-plus category with 4,424 bhp. Detailed particulars published following its delivery specify 63 tonnes of bollard pull and a free-running speed of 12 knots.
Power comes from two Caterpillar 3516C engines, rated at 1,641 kW each, which turn Kongsberg US205S azimuthing thrusters fitted with fixed-pitch 2,400-mm propellers. For ship handling, the tug carries a windlass and hawser winch at the bow, together with a towing hook at the stern.
SN Cariri entered Sulnorte service in 2024. The company subsequently said that two further new tugs were due to be launched during 2025, leading to the construction of SN Acaraú and SN Caraíva.
Sulnorte is a family-owned Brazilian towage company established in 1978. Its services cover harbour and coastal towage, including work involving tankers, containerships, ro-ro vessels, project cargo and offshore operations.
The company operates a 24-hour control centre that monitors tug movements and allocates vessels to manoeuvres across its Brazilian operations.
