VESSEL REVIEW | Turas a ‘Bhradain – Landing craft to support Bakkafrost Scotland’s salmon farming activities

Fish farm operator Bakkafrost Scotland recently took delivery of a new landing craft built by Macduff Shipyards to a design by sister company Macduff Ship Design.

Named Turas a 'Bhradain after a Gaelic phrase that translates into "The Salmon's Journey," the vessel is the first in a series of two bespoke landing craft to be designed and built by the Macduff Group to support Bakkafrost's salmon harvesting activities on the West Coast of Scotland and the Hebrides.

Specifically, the newbuild was designed as a multi-role workboat with a large open working deck with offset port casing for improved starboard side access and a large forward ramp. The layout will allow the vessel to complete a wide range of tasks from general cargo duties to specific aquaculture services.

The landing craft has durable all-steel construction with a hard-chine hull form, a length of 24 metres, a beam of nine metres, a maximum draught of 2.25 metres, a depth of 3.1 metres, and two Doosan 4L126CAKH main engines that each produce 373 kW at 2,000 rpm. The engines are IMO Tier III-compliant and drive Teignbridge nozzle-housed 1,500mm propellers via D-I DMTP6500 gearboxes with throttle control provided by a Flexball system. Doosan also supplied an AD136TI generator, which provides electrical power for the various onboard systems. A side thruster from Kort Propulsion is also fitted.

For fish pen maintenance work and cargo transport duties, Turas a 'Bhradain relies on two HS.Marine knuckle boom cranes mounted fore and aft on the spacious main deck. The wheelhouse is offset to port to provide ample room for operating the cranes, which are placed on starboard. The deck itself can accommodate three 20-foot containers or up to 125 tonnes of assorted cargo.

The deck machinery comprises three capstans all arranged to starboard, an anchor windlass, hydraulic rams for operation of the bow ramp, and a tow winch situated on the centreline. Due to the offset position of the casing, the winch can work both aft over a stern roller or forward over a narrow roller built into the bow ramp.

Turas a 'Bhradain will initially be operated alongside Bakkafrost Scotland's wellboats Ronja Star and Ronja Fisk, playing a key role in fish health by preparing the company's pens for the wellboats to carry out freshwater treatments.

Click here for more news and gear stories, feature articles, and vessel reviews as part of this month's focus on fishing and aquaculture.