Dubai: Drydocks World-Dubai reports that it recently added two new berths to its UAE facility, increasing its Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) conversion capacity by two vessels per year.
Pictured are Geoff Taylor, Executive Chairman, Drydocks World (left), Grahame McCaig, General Manager, Dutco Balfour Beatty LLC (centre) and Hamed Mohammed bin Lahej, Executive Vice-Chairman, Drydocks World (right), inaugurating the new FPSO Quay.
The new FPSO Quay is located on the lee face of the main breakwater, with a total length of 668mtr and a dredged depth of 11mtr over a length of 630mtr. Each new berth is more than 59mtr wide.
"We are proud to have successfully completed another expansion project at our shipyard," said Bob Normand, Director of Infrastructure Development of Drydocks World, the shiprepair, conversion and building subsidiary of Drydocks World. "The two new berths will further strengthen Drydocks World-Dubai's profile as the largest and most efficient maritime industry hub in the region. Berths 9 and 10 are capable of handling supertanker-size vessels."
The completion of Berths 9 and 10 enable the shipyard to provide more lay-down and fabrication areas for the conversion of VLCCs to FPSOs. FPSOs usually dock for one to two years, occupying crucial yard space for repairing of vessels. The new berths, which currently operate with three cranes provides the much-needed additional space to meet growing customer demand.
The yard is to work on the conversion of TI Asia, one of the four largest oil tankers in the world weighing, into an FPSO, with Dubai among the very few ports in the world that can host the mega ship. [28/05/09]
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