Wilson Sons has brought its new tugboat into service in northeast Brazil, where it has seen increased demand for ship towage
WS Orion was built at the Wilson Sons shipyard in Guarujá as a reverse stern drive (RSD) tug with a FiFi1 class fire-fighting system and 90 tonnes of bollard pull.
It has joined sister tugboat WS Centaurus in São Luís, state of Maranhão, to escort ships into ports and terminals in the area, berthing its first vessel 24 October. They both serve the terminals of Ponta da Madeira, docking and manoeuvring large vessels transporting iron ore, and operate in Itaqui and Alumar harbours.
WS Orion built to Damen’s RSD 2513 design and has sufficient power to manoeuvre large ships carrying up to 400,000 tonnes of cargo. It has an overall length of 25 m and beam of 13 m, with an efficient twin-fin hullform for improved hydrodynamics for better navigation and drag capacity in manoeuvres, cutting fuel consumption and emissions.
WS Orion’s propulsion complies with IMO Tier III emissions requirements to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by more than 75% and help improve air quality at the ports where it operates.
Wilson Sons executive director of the tugboat division Marcio Castro said these new escort tugs are needed due to more Capesize bulk carriers calling at Brazilian ports.
“Demand for powerful tugboats has been growing in ports throughout Brazil, due to the large-size ships berthing at the terminals, such as Ponta da Madeira, to handle iron ore, and 360-m long container ships being prepared to operate in Brazilian waters,” he said.
“The delivery of WS Orion reaffirms Wilson Sons’ pioneering status in Brazil, using modern projects aligned with the agendas of sustainability and innovation in the construction of its vessels.”
Wilson Sons passed a major construction milestone with WS Orion’s delivery. “We reached the mark of 150 vessels built in our shipyard in Guarujá,” said executive director of Wilson Sons shipyards Adalberto Souza.
WS Orion is the second of six new sustainable escort tugs the Brazilian group is constructing at the shipyard. The other four tugs are scheduled for delivery in 2023.
Wilson Sons sustainability director Monica Jaén expects the Damen RSD hullform of WS Orion to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 14% due to the efficient hydrodynamics.
“We promote the best operating and socio-environmental practices in our tugboat fleet,” she said. “WS Orion and WS Centaurus join the first vessels in Brazil to voluntarily comply with the IMO Tier III pollution prevention guidelines.”
Wilson Sons participates in the operation of more than 50% of all vessels berthing at Brazilian ocean ports by cabotage shipping. It operates a fleet of 80 tugs along the Brazilian coast, all monitored 24/7 by the Tugboat Operations Centre based in Santos for safer and more efficient operations.
“We make sure we employ the most suitable tug, which is best positioned to perform the berthing or unberthing manoeuvre at the right time, with economic speed,” said Mr Castro.
“We have been doing this for over 10 years, supported by our Tugboat Operations Centre, and have seen excellent results both in operations and in the control of air emissions.”
Wilson Sons estimates this monitoring has led to a 5% drop in fuel consumption and, consequently, in air emissions.
