VESSEL REVIEW | Fenghaida – DP2 cargo carrier for Hong Kong Juquan Shipping

Hong Kong Juquan Shipping has taken delivery of a new catamaran heavy transport vessel built by China's Taizhou Fangzhen Shipbuilding.

The DP2-capable Fenghaida has an LOA of 139.8 metres, a beam of 41 metres, a draught of five metres, a deadweight tonnage of 14,500, an open deck measuring 123 metres and with a total area of 5,000 square metres, and a speed of 12 knots. Design work was undertaken by Shanghai Aichuan Ship Technology (SAST).

The vessel will be used primarily for the transport of project cargo, particularly offshore wind and oil and gas platforms and associated components, in both offshore and inland waters. According to SAST deputy general manager Gao Zhaojin, the design draws on the concept of shuttle tankers and the concept of direct access to the river and sea, providing better stability than monohulls and reducing the acceleration force when cargo is being lifted off the deck. This then improves and optimises motion behaviour for maximum manoeuvrability, delivers excellent seakeeping performance, and enhances berthing and unberthing efficiency in ports.

Gao added that berthing and unberthing can be completed in as little as one hour, allowing for minimal delay in construction projects that seek to make the best possible use of small construction windows dictated by weather and sea conditions. The DP2 system meanwhile helps the operator avoid the risk of having the vessel's own positioning anchors impacting against the pile legs of an adjacent jackup vessel that will perform the actual installation of turbine components, hence ensuring safer operations.

The large deck space allows the transport of a single 6,000-tonne booster station or up to three 2,000-tonne jackets. The vessel can also sail on port-to-port international voyages, allowing a broader selection of offshore construction projects to be completed. Anchors at the bow and the stern are redundant features to help permit more secure positioning during loading and unloading of large components.

The shallow draught of the vessel's relatively small waterline surface ensures compatibility with a greater number of ports, and the low freeboard means multi-wheel flatbed trailers can be utilised for port loading. For improved berthing and unberthing the vessel relies on two bow thrusters and an azimuthing stern thruster.

The catamaran hull also helps ensure greater fuel economy. Daily fuel consumption at a 10-knot operating speed is limited to only 10 tonnes whereas a monohull of similar dimensions will need about 19 tonnes to achieve the same average speed.

Fenghaida is classed by China Classification Society and is built to comply with Hong Kong flag requirements covering fire protection and pollution prevention.