Crowley Fuels LLC took delivery Tuesday of a new Alaska-class 100,000-bbl., articulated tug-barge (ATB), which will be used to transport multiple clean petroleum products for the Alaska market. The ATB was built by Bollinger Shipyards at its Amelia, La., facility.
Crowley will operate the 483-foot ATB for Alaska-based Petro Star Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC) under a long-term charter. Crowley Fuels is the Alaska-based petroleum transportation, distribution and sales unit of Crowley Maritime Corp.
The ATB unit consists of the twin Z-drive, 7,000-hp, 128'x85'x19' tug Aveogan paired with the 400'x85', 100,000-bbl. ocean barge Oliver Leavitt. The ATB is the first in Crowley’s fleet to be dedicated to the Alaska market.
The Crowley ATB tug Aveogan. Crowley Shipping photo
Crowley Shipping provided vessel construction management services at Bollinger Marine Fabricators in Amelia from the final design phase through delivery. Crowley’s Seattle-based naval architecture and marine engineering firm, Jensen Maritime, provided the functional design. Bollinger’s engineering team provided the integration, detail design and construction package. Jensen designed the ATB to meet Ice-class and Polar Code requirements, which includes increased structural framing and shell plating and extended zero discharge endurance. The double-hulled design also features a barge form factor to achieve high-cargo capacity on minimal draft.
“The new vessel’s advanced design and environmental protection features mark a new era for fuel transportation services in Alaska,” said Rick Meidel, vice president and general manager, Crowley Fuels Alaska. “She will give many years of safe and reliable service for our valued customer Petro Star.”
“On behalf of our skilled workforce, along with a strong operational support group, the Bollinger team is proud to have built this ATB for Crowley Fuels,” Bollinger Shipyards president & CEO Ben Bordelon said in a statement announcing the delivery. “Contracts like this to build Jones Act classed ATB units, create and protect many jobs for U.S. mariners, shipyards and ancillary vendors.”
The tug has twin Schottel SRP-560 azimuthing Z-drives with carbon fiber drafts to enhance maneuverability, and an Intercon C-series coupling system with a first-of-its-kind lightering helmet. The tug is fitted with two Wabtec 8L250MDC engines that develop 3,384 hp at 1,000 rpm each. The engines meet EPA Tier 4 and IMO Tier III emissions standards. The tug has a running speed of approximately 11 knots. The Aveogan has a capacity of 11 crew.
The three 99-kW John Deere SSDG and one 88-kW John Deere generators on the tug and barge meet EPA Tier 3 and IMO Tier II emissions standards. In addition, a closed loop, freshwater ballast system will eliminate the need to discharge tug ballast water into the sea.
The tug is equipped with a fire monitor and foam proportioner, providing off-ship firefighting capabilities to the barge. The barge is also outfitted with spill response gear and a hydraulic boom reel with 2,000 linear feet of inflatable boom to support spill response efforts. The vessel was built with enhanced features to benefit the crew, including 45-degree sloped staircases, interior sound deadening and dedicated heads in each cabin.
“We are pleased to take delivery of this high-performance ATB, Aveogan-Oliver Leavitt, and look forward to getting her up to Alaska to begin serving our partners at Petro Star,” said Rocky Smith, senior vice president and general manager, Crowley Fuels. “We congratulate the men and women at Jensen who designed the vessel and the team at Bollinger Shipyard who built it.”
