VESSEL REVIEW | Aremiti 6 – Flexible ferry design for French Polynesia

The 49.9-metre high-speed catamaran Aremiti 6 was recently delivered to SNC Aremiti of French Polynesia. The owner required a medium-sized, high-speed ferry with large passenger capacity and small vehicle carrying capacity, which offered fast port turnaround times and the flexibility to operate on multiple, variable distance routes.

Aremiti 6 is classed by DNV-GL with notation +1A HSLC R2 Ferry (A) E0 and complies with French and HSC regulations. Based in Tahiti, she is French-flagged.

The new ferry measures in at 49.85 metres length overall, with a moulded beam of 14.2 metres, depth of 5.0 metres and design draught of 1.9 metres. Resulting lightweight is 311.6 tonnes, design deadweight of 99.6 tonnes, displacement of 411.2 tonnes and gross tonnage of 1,286.

A new design from Austal's Australian based design team, Aremiti 6 includes a garage space on the main deck with three vehicle ramps at the rear and on the sides, providing capacity for up to 30 motorbikes and/or six small cars or bulky cargo. This system offers flexibility to operate in various ports as may be necessary. The ship has a maximum deadweight of 80 tonnes.

The quick production time desired by the owner required fast design development, based on a previous vessel platform, with modifications.

The vessel can carry 550 passengers across two enclosed decks, with additional external (upper) deck seating available for 70. On the main deck there is seating for 226, with 324 on the upper deck. The vessel also has a crew of eight.

The passenger saloon features spacious and comfortable seating, with amenities including a bar and kiosk, and multiple flat-screen televisions for on-board infotainment for the 10-nautical-mile Papeete to Moorea journey. She may also be placed on other routes within French Polynesia as necessary.

Constructed at Austal's Philippines shipyard, the all-aluminium catamaran can travel at speeds in excess of 37 knots and is powered by four MTU 16V4000M63L (IMO Tier II) engines, each producing 2,240 kW at 1,800 rpm. The ship is fitted with ZF 7650 NR2H gearboxes and Hamilton HT810 waterjets and has a range of approximately 270 nautical miles.

Aremiti 6 is fitted with Austal's "Marine Link" system, which is designed to integrate various vessel machinery systems by collecting and presenting information from these systems to provide a central source of vessel information and operator input.

Aremiti 6 also features Austal's proprietary motion control system, comprising T-foils forward on each hull and interceptors aft – providing a superior ride with less motion and greater passenger and crew comfort for every journey in various sea states.