Chile Benefits from Qatari Cancellation
The Chilean Navy is to receive an Anchor Handling Towing Supply and Standby Vessel (AHTSSV) from Indian shipyard Larsen and Toubro Shipbuilding (L&T) for $11.5 million (€10.5 million). The unit was part of an order for four supply vessels and two specialized vessels for towing, handling and anchor positioning for offshore platforms, placed in 2013 by Qatar’s Halul Offshore Services Co (HOSC) with L&T Shipbuilding.
The delivery of the ships, each valued at approx. $29 million, was cancelled by HOSC in 2016 due to the fall in demand for services from the oil industry. The two units completed that year were put up for sale by L&T in 2018.
The acquisition of the AHTSSV will be achieved via the US DoD Foreign Military Sales (FMS) channel and will be managed by Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA): the work will be completed in Chennai, India in May 2020.
The ship is 70m long, has a beam of 19m and a maximum draft of 6.2m. Displacement is 2,500t, it has a static pulling capacity of 150t can transport 38 crew plus 22 passengers. It features diesel-hybrid propulsion, has a dynamic positioning system and can fight fires, respond to emergencies, conduct rescue missions, replenish supplies at sea and recover spilled oil, among other acctivities.
The vessel destined for Chile has two 2290KW MAN main engines, two 1600KW hybrid engines from Siemens and reaches a top speed of 13.5 knots.
Santiago Rivas/Florencia Lucero Heguy for MON
