Last Thursday, Royal IHC together with the RMC shipyard in Qidong, China, held a launching ceremony for the Easydredge 3700 trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD), the Mahaa Jarraafu.
The dredger, built for the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC), will be used for land reclamation, infrastructure and beach nourishment projects on several islands and resorts in Asia.
According to IHC Project Manager, Philip van den Broek , the contract for this newbuild became effective in August 2015 with a delivery time of 20 months.
“ The keel-laying took place on 25 August 2016, and the ship is expected to be delivered in April 2017, just ahead of schedule. This is due to the excellent communication between our partner yard in Qidong, MTCC and all involved IHC departments in Kinderdijk ,” added Philip van den Broek.
TSHD Mahaa Jarraafu, like all ships in the series, is equipped with the specially designed Easydredge dredging equipment, including a state-of-the-art IHC dredge pump and a slender hull for increased speed and low fuel consumption.
In addition, the vessel has a ‘world dredging’ equipment package, which includes an adjustable overflow, bottom doors, jet water system and a shore pumping installation. The ship is also equipped with an extended suction pipe and an underwater pump that enables the vessel to dredge to a depth of 50 meters.