INCAT Tasmania has secured a heavylift/flo-flo vessel to ship its pioneering battery electric fast ferry China Zorrilla to client Buquebus in South America.
Incat announced this afternoon [1 June] that Boskalis’ Black Marlin will arrive in Hobart via Melbourne and will become one of the largest vessels to enter the River Derwent. It is 217 metres long and 42 metres wide, has a deadweight tonnage of 57,021 and is capable of carrying some of the world’ largest marine structure.
Its big sister Blue Marlin brought the hulls of the Royal Australian Navy ’s landing helicopter dock ships HMAS Adelaide and HMAS Canberra from Spain to Melbourne last decade.
According to AIS, Black Marlin is currently off West Africa, en route from Las Palmas in the Canary Islands to Cape Town, South Africa where it is due 11 June.
Incat Chairman Robert Clifford said the arrival of the heavy lift vessel would mark another major step in one of the most groundbreaking shipbuilding projects in the world.
"There is a great deal of interest in Hull 096, and we receive enquiries almost every day from people wanting to know what is happening with the vessel and when it will begin its journey to South America," Mr Clifford said.
"The arrival of the Black Marlin will be an exciting moment. It signals that we are entering the final stage before the vessel departs Tasmania and begins its journey to its new home across the world.
"Watching it load Hull 096 [China Zorrilla] will be a spectacular sight and a proud moment for Tasmania. We've had people from all over the world following the construction of this vessel, and I think there will be a lot of interest in seeing the next stage of the journey as the vessel prepares to leave for South America."
Mr Clifford said Incat would provide updates as the Black Marlin makes its way towards Hobart.
Once in Hobart, the vessel will undertake a carefully planned loading operation. As a semi-submersible heavy lift ship, the Black Marlin can submerge its cargo deck beneath the waterline by taking on ballast. Hull 096 will then be manoeuvred into position above the submerged deck before the ballast water is pumped out, lifting the cargo deck clear of the water.
The operation will provide a spectacular sight on the River Derwent and represents one of the most complex maritime movements ever undertaken in Tasmania, Incat said.
It is not clear if Black Marlin is the ship originally booked to transport China Zorrilla, the shipment of which has been delayed by several months as the expected vessel had been trapped in the Middle East by the Strait of Hormuz closure.