VESSEL REVIEW | Jhara – Firefighting and general support tugs delivered to Pakistan Navy

Pakistan state-owned shipbuilder Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KS&EW) has handed over two new tugs in a series to the Pakistan Navy.

PNT Jhara and PNT Imam Bukhsh were built by KS&EW to be used mainly in providing ship handling support for the navy's surface vessels and submarines but may also be employed for secondary duties including salvage operations. Versatility and durability are both guaranteed by the vessels' design, which also took the rough weather and sea conditions in Pakistan's offshore waters into consideration.

Each tug has a length of 25 metres, a moulded beam of 10.5 metres, a maximum draught of 5.5 metres, a displacement of 250 tonnes, and two diesel engines that each produce 883 kW. The engines drive a pair of 2,100-millimetre propellers housed in azimuth thrusters to deliver speeds of up to 12 knots and a bollard pull of at least 48 tonnes.

The deck equipment consists of an Ibercisa towing winch with 90 tonnes capacity and a Palfinger Marine PK 15500MA crane with 1.5 tonnes capacity for use in salvage works or in the loading and unloading of light cargo on the open aft deck. The wheelhouse provides unhindered all-round visibility to allow a limited bridge crew to safely operate all deck machinery.

The tugs are also each equipped with two diesel generator sets and a sewage treatment plant. FiFi1 equipment that includes a main engine-driven Mampaey pump with a flow rate of 600 cubic metres per hour and two monitors enhance the vessels' ability to respond to emergencies in and around the navy's ports. All onboard equipment comply with SOLAS and MARPOL standards and feature automation for greater operating efficiency.

Jhara and Imam Bukhsh each have accommodations for up to 16 crewmembers. There are two single-berth cabins for the officers, double cabins for the remaining 14 crew, and junior and senior mess areas.

See more stories from this month's Tug and Salvage Week here.