VESSEL REVIEW | Antarctic – UK's Fiskebas Fishing adds midwater trawler to North Sea fleet

Shetland, UK-based Fiskebas Fishing has taken delivery of a new midwater pelagic trawler built by Zamakona Yards of Spain. Antarctic is the second vessel to be designed by Norwegian naval architecture firm Skipsteknisk for Fiskebas after the 2004-built Antarctic II.

The DNV-classed trawler measures 69.6 metres (228 feet) long by 15.2 metres (49.9 feet) wide and has accommodation for up to 14 people. Eleven RSW tanks have a combined capacity of 2,000 cubic metres (71,000 cubic feet). Zamakona said the construction emphasised ensuring the efficiency of water circulation within the RSW tanks as well as the reliability of the full suite of trawling and fish handling systems.

“The vessel is large and advanced, yet there are larger vessels in the same segment,” designer Skipsteknisk told Baird Maritime. “This vessel is equipped with the same level of equipment as those larger ships. It is always exciting to first start getting space for all the equipment and then adapt it to function optimally with everything else on board the vessel.”

New vessel utilising proven systems

Skipsteknisk said the vessel is based on the same foundation as several previous pelagic vessels that it also designed and that received positive feedback for their seakeeping abilities and cargo capacities. In the case of Antarctic, it also is outfitted with a heat recovery system to maximise use of the energy onboard the vessel.

“This is something that we have a lot of experience with on other types of vessels, and we are sure the owners will gain a lot of advantages from this installation in the future,” said Skipsteknisk.

The new vessel will enable Fiskebas Fishing to operate an efficient and sustainable fishery with all the latest equipment available on the market. The resulting efficient setup will help reduce operating costs, and it is now possible to perform the same fishing activities but with a smaller carbon footprint.

The deck equipment includes a Karmoy package consisting of winches, net drums, cranes, hoses, reels, and a fish pump. The electronics suite includes fish finding and navigation gear, satellite communications equipment, VHF radios, and CCTV cameras. Maritime Montering was meanwhile responsible for work on the interior spaces.

The propulsion setup includes a 9L32/44CR main engine and three generators from MAN and a Brunvoll Volda gear and propeller arrangement. Brunvoll also supplied the side thrusters and the 2,600kW shaft generator while Cummins provided a 124kVA harbour generator.

The designer and the owner have had years of close collaboration on prior newbuilding projects, and Antarctic is the latest result of that collaboration.

A stable, versatile platform

“The owner already had a vessel designed by us, and this underwent a major refit a few years ago," said Skipsteknisk. "Since the owner was highly satisfied with the previous vessel, many of the features implemented both before and after the refit were also incorporated in Antarctic. A great deal of effort therefore went into making sure the working conditions and the safety of the crew are as optimal as possible, both on the outer deck and in the interior spaces.”

Considerable effort also went into optimising the available tonnage to match the hull to the operational profile while creating a robust and efficient platform.

Skipsteknisk said the main challenge in designing the vessel lay in finding an ideal balance between maximising cargo volume, maintaining seakeeping capability, and simultaneously adapting machinery solutions to ensure an ideal service speed.

“We learned that it always pays to follow up on projects by being present during the construction itself and maintaining constant communication with both the owner and the shipyard,” the designer told Baird Maritime. “We, as well as the owner, have been present at the yard through the whole construction period.”

The crew accommodation spaces include cabins, lounges, and a hospital.

Antarctic’s area of operations will be off Shetland, particularly the North Sea and the North Atlantic. The vessel will be homeported in Lerwick.