Construction starts on new shallow-draught vessel for Dutch sea research institute

On Thursday, July 8, Dutch shipbuilder Next Generation Shipyards held a keel-laying ceremony to mark the start of construction of a new shallow-draught research vessel slated for the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (Nederlands Instituut voor Zeeonderzoek; NIOZ).

Designed by local naval architects C-Job, the future Adriaen Coenen will be used primarily for research sailings in the Wadden Sea and the Zeeland delta. It is scheduled to enter service in the middle of 2022.

The vessel will have space for up to 12 scientists and other personnel in addition to the crew of two.

For the vessel to be able to operate in the Wadden Sea, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the main engine will be powered by hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) instead of diesel. NG Shipyards said this will ensure CO2 emissions of as much as 90 per cent.