Freire Shipyard Inks Deal to Build Oceanographic Research Vessel

Freire Shipyard signed a contract with IFREMER - the French national institute for ocean science - for the construction of a new 40.3-m vessel for the French oceanographic fleet. It will be designed to deal with all disciplines of oceanography in Atlantic coastal areas: geosciences and paleoclimatology, physical oceanography and biogeochemistry, biological oceanography, and ecosystem functioning, from the coastline to the continental shelf. It will also perform duties related to fishery on the continental shelf and will accommodate a crew of 12 people and 10 scientists, allowing for training campaigns with teachers and students on board.

The oceanographic research vessel stands out for the wide range of energy savings technologies and low-consumption solutions implemented: from the hull design, the design of the power plant, the power distribution system, the heat recovery system, the level from thermal insulation to the efficiency of air conditioning.

The diesel electric propulsion system will combine three main variable speed generator sets (suitable for operation on biodiesel), two shaft lines driven by electric motors and a DC electric distribution system, which together with a battery pack will offer great performance of the power plant, optimization of consumption, good redundancy, and outstanding acoustic performance (not only in terms of compliance with BV COMF 2 class notation but also with DNV SILENT-F standard). The dynamic positioning system and the electric bow thruster facilitate the maneuverability of the boat.

It will have an oceanographic marine telescopic main crane at the stern for marine use designed to launch and to recover scientific equipment (corer, buoys, etc.) and general handling on the aft part of the vessel. In addition, she will have a type A stern gantry, a T-type lateral gantry and a telescopic rail beam for CTD maneuvering. For fishing operations, this boat will also have two trawling winches and a removable net drum.