Damen has carried out the successful floating of the Antarctic Supply Research Vessel (ASRV) RSV Nuyina currently under construction at Damen Shipyards Galati.
The carefully executed procedure was achieved by raising the water level in the yard’s dry dock by six metres; a process taking two days to complete. Once afloat, the vessel was manoeuvred 250 m to a quayside berth where the ongoing construction and outfitting process will take place.
Multi-mission Role
Damen is building the 160-metre long ASRV for Serco subsidiary DMS Maritime on behalf of the Australian Department of the Environment and Energy. The vessel has been designed with a multi-mission role in mind. It will keep Australia’s three permanent research stations on the Antarctic continent and its research station on Macquarie Island supplied with cargo, equipment and personnel. Additionally, it will serve as a fully equipped research laboratory facility for up to 116 scientific staff.
Construction Process
Construction of the vessel began in August 2017 with a ceremonial keel-laying ceremony. Building from the keel up, the construction process has now reached the fourth deck level. Now that the vessel is afloat, construction will continue with the positioning of pre-fabricated superstructure blocks, bringing the finished vessel to its full 10-deck height of just over 50 m.
The construction process is calling on input from two different Damen yards: Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding in the Netherlands is providing engineering and project management services, and Damen Shipyards Galati is carrying out vessel construction and outfitting tasks.
