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Durban port takes delivery of Umbilo tug

26th May 2017

By: Shirley le Guern

Creamer Media Correspondent

     

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“Made for Durban in Durban” is how Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) CEO Richard Vallihu described the Umbilo, the latest tug to be launched in Durban, on Friday.

The sixth to roll off the South African Shipyards’ (SAS’s) production line, the Umbilo will be the first tug to be based at its home port of Durban. Five tugs have already been delivered to Port Elizabeth, Saldanha and Richards Bay.

The seventh tug is already under production and will be launched within months. It, too, will remain in Durban. 

The tugs are 31 m long with a 70 t bollard pull and feature the latest global technology, including Voith Schneider propulsion, which makes them highly manoeuvrable. This is particularly suited to a small port like Durban where large vessels have to be moved over shorter distances quickly.   

Vallihu confirmed that all nine tugs that form part of Transnet Port Terminals’ R1.4-billion tug building contract with SAS, would be delivered within budget and on time. The final tug is due to be launched in early 2018.

This is the largest contract ever awarded to a local manufacturer and could be the precursor to Transnet building its own dredges, he hinted.

Vallihu told dignitaries at the tug naming ceremony, which saw eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede act as the traditional lady sponsor, that it was important for South Africa to develop the competency and engineering skills to build its own fleet using world-class technology.

He said it was particularly important to renew Durban’s fleet of tugs if the port was to remain a market leader serving larger vessels more frequently.

“Over the past few years, the Port of Durban has seen larger vessels calling. This has put a strain on our marine fleet. Currently, the port has a total of eight tugs of which four are old shuttle tugs with only 32 t and 38 t bollard pull power. As a result, the port has been deploying a five-tug operation to help guide vessels into port instead of the six-tug operation required to meet world standards,’ he said.

He said the Umbilo – and the additional tug to come – would not only relieve pressure on the port but also speed up turnaround times and reduce the cost of doing business.

Vallihu said TNPA was translating government’s radical economic reform agenda into a “radical port reform” strategy that would see the implementation of programmes that are in line with the fourth industrial revolution.

By embracing the Internet of Things and the appropriate technology, TNPA expects to create a communications platform that will enable it to share information with a much wider audience.

This will, in turn, enable TNPA to work more closely with the local municipality for the benefit of the region. 

Gumede commended SAS on the delivery of the six tugs, saying this success story would form the basis for setting up a special economic zone in the port that would focus on the shipbuilding industry. This would go some way to addressing the need to grow manufacturing and create jobs in the eThekwini region.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

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