VESSEL REFIT | Taktow – Irish operator acquires multi-role harbour tug

O'Malley Marine Plant, a workboat operator based in County Mayo, Ireland, recently took delivery of a multi-role, shallow-draught tug built by Damen Shipyards Gorinchem in the Netherlands.

Taktow was originally built in 1981 but has been modernised to perform a range of duties. The tug has been issued with an Irish Loadline and Irish P5 passenger boat licence, which make it suitable for many different projects including towing, mooring, barge handling, anchor handling, salvage, and support for dredging works and renewable energy operations. Built to Bureau Veritas I 3/3 (E) Tug Deep Sea unrestricted service classification and MCA Category I certification, the vessel can operate up to 240 kilometres offshore.

Taktow has a length of 22.5 metres, a beam of 6.8 metres, a draught of only 3.2 metres, and a gross tonnage of 109. Two Caterpillar V8 engines drive Promarin fixed-pitch propellers via Reintjes gearboxes to deliver a maximum speed of 11.8 knots and a bollard pull of 18.2 tonnes.

Additional features include anchor and towing winches, a deck crane, and space for a crew of seven. The heated accommodation spaces include officer's cabins for the captain and the chief engineer, single and three-person cabins for the five remaining crewmembers, sanitary facilities, and a galley.

The electronics suite meanwhile includes a radar and an AIS from JRC, a GPS and an echosounder from Furuno, Sailor VHF radios, and two Pesche 300W searchlights. These and all the other systems draw power from Caterpillar 62kVA and 68kVA generators.

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