Royal IHC: DEME’s CSD Spartacus Ready to Hit the Water

The Spartacus’ keel laying ceremony, Image source: IHC

The launching ceremony of the Spartacus – the world’s most powerful cutter suction dredger – is set to take place on Saturday, November 10, 2018.

The 164 meters long dredger, built for DEME at the Royal IHC shipyard in Krimpen aan den IJssel, will have a heavy-duty cutter ladder and can reach a dredging depth of 45 meters.

The concept and basic design for this mega cutter was done in close cooperation with DEME, Vuyk Engineering Rotterdam (a 100% subsidiary of IHC) and IHC.

“This cutter suction dredger is going to be an important benchmark for the industry and a huge step toward limiting the environmental impact of our vessels,” said DEME’s Head of Construction and Conversion Jan Gabriel.

Several innovations and LNG-powered

The 44,180kW Spartacus will be the world’s first LNG-powered (liquefied natural gas) CSD and follows the order for the first LNG-powered trailing suction hopper dredgers (TSHDs) Minerva and Scheldt River, and ‘LNG-ready’ Bonny River.

The four main diesel engines can run on LNG, MDO and HFO, and the two auxiliary engines have dual-fuel technology.

In close cooperation with DEME, the two organizations have managed to fit all the pieces together.