VESSEL REVIEW | Fast spill response boat for Russian maritime transport agency

Russia's More Shipyard has handed over a new oil spill response vessel to the country’s State Acceptance Committee. The vessel will be operated by the Marine Rescue Service of the Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transportation (Rosmorrechflot).

Updating an already proven design

Designed in compliance with Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (KM) class rules, the vessel belongs to the Project A40-2B series, which are upgraded variants of an earlier range of oil spill response boats. Improvements over the Project A40-1B series include increasing the length of the hull by two metres (6.6 feet) to accommodate greater space for living quarters and a larger aft working deck; installation of a boom crane with a lifting capacity of 990 kg (2,200 lb); and a higher maximum speed.

The Project A40-2B vessels nonetheless retain their predecessors’ ability to respond to oil spills by transporting and installing containment booms particularly in nearshore and inland waters, ports, and bays under ice-free conditions year-round up to 50 nautical miles from the nearest coast, though their Ice class 2 hulls will permit operation even in mild winter conditions.

Capable of high operating speeds

The newer vessels are also capable of collecting spilled oil from the surface of the water, storing it in floating tanks (as the vessels themselves have no onboard storage facilities), and towing these to onshore or floating stations with adequate oil processing capability. Secondary duties include salvage and search and rescue (SAR).

The vessel has an LOA of 20.97 metres (68.8 feet) including the fenders, a beam of 4.7 metres (15 feet), a maximum draught of only 1.33 metres (4.36 feet), a depth of 2.96 metres (9.71 feet), a displacement of 46.4 tonnes at full load, a deadweight tonnage of 3.668, and accommodation for two crewmembers and up to four additional personnel. Two 588kW (789hp) main engines will deliver a top speed of 22 knots while an economical cruising speed of 12 knots will enable the vessel to sail up to 250 nautical miles or stay out at sea for three days.

The vessel is also fitted with a Furuno radar and a rotating thermal camera. These and the other onboard electronics will enable it to respond to oil spills, conduct salvage, or rescue people at sea even in bad weather or other low-light conditions.

Rosmorrechflot's new Project A40-2B vessel will be operated out of the Port of Novorossiysk on Russia’s Black Sea coast.