Ulrica Messing named new generation of Broström vessels

On Thursday, 20 October, BRO DELIVERER and BRO DESIGNER were named as the first two vessels in a series of four. The naming ceremony was held at the Jinling shipyard, with Sweden’s Minister of Infrastructure, Ulrica Messing, on hand as “godmother”.

BRO DELIVERER and BRO DESIGNER are the first two in a series of four 14,500 dwt vessels that Broström has ordered from the Chinese shipyard. These D-class vessels will join Broström’s northern European operations and will further strengthen the company’s offering to its customers in the oil and chemical industry. “D-class” is more than just a category of four new vessels. It represents a unique way of thinking when placing orders for new vessels. The four vessels are unique with respect to how their specifications have been drawn up as well as to their technical design. The specifications are largely based on information gathered from Broström’s customers and cover, among other things, future distribution systems, cargo sizes, product mix, refinery capacity, and terminal capacities and limitations. This information has resulted in development on the combination of the number and size of cargo tanks. In addition, the vessels all incorporate improvements with respect to discharging capacity, manoeuvrability and propulsion systems. The vessels have also been designed for improved safety in narrow and heavily trafficked shipping lanes and to minimise dependence on assistance from tugs. The vessels’ safety has been further enhanced by fitting them with twin propulsion systems. The tankers are the first to be built according to the DNV classification society’s “Clean Design” classification. This class stipulates to minimise emissions to the air and sea during operation as well as in the event of an accident. One example of the vessels’ design is that all diesel engines will be fitted with catalytic converters to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions. The work on drawing up the specifications for these D-class vessels started back in 2002 and culminated in December 2003 with an order to the Jinling shipyard in Nanjing, China. The design work was then begun prior to the start of steel-cutting for the first vessel in September 2004. The keel was laid for that vessel in November of the same year. The hulls of the first two vessels were completed in 2005, entailing the completion of the hull and deck, along with the installation of major machinery and components. Following the naming ceremony, installation and testing of other equipment will be performed. BRO DELIVERER is scheduled to make its virgin voyage in January 2006, while delivery of BRO DESIGNER is scheduled to take place in May 2006. The two following sister vessels will be delivered in late 2006 and early 2007, respectively. Göteborg, 21 October 2005 BROSTRÖM AB (publ) For further information: Lennart Simonsson, CEO Broström, Tel +46 31 61 61 00 More information about Broström can be found on www.brostrom.se