Adnoc's maritime arm acquires six line boats

The vessels were procured from Sharjah-based Albwardy Damen

Adnoc L&S is expanding its fleet capacity. The company acquired two very large crude carriers in April, raising its total crude oil cargo capacity to 16 million barrels in 2021. Courtesy: Adnoc

Adnoc's maritime and logistics unit is acquiring six line boats for critical marine services across petroleum ports in the UAE capital.

Adnoc Logistics and Services procured the vessels from Sharjah-based Albwardy Damen, the company said on Tuesday.

The deal allows for significant value to flow back to the UAE economy and is in line with the company's efforts to procure more goods and services locally.

"We are committed to boosting our operations by contributing to the development of high-end shipbuilding and repair capabilities within the UAE," said Capt Abdulkareem Al Masabi, chief executive of Adnoc L&S.

"The country is emerging as a global hub for maritime and shipping operations, and we continue to enhance the business environment for shipping and affiliated sectors through such targeted capital expenditure."

The company uses line boats to berth and unberth tankers, as well as to handle hoses at oil terminals.

Adnoc L&S acquired the Damen Stan Tug 1606 type of line boat to provide maritime services. The boats are powered by two Caterpillar engines and have about 16 tonnes of bollard pull, which refers to the force exerted by a vessel under full power.

The company awarded the contract for the line boats in July 2020 to Albwardy Damen, a subsidiary of the Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group, a shipbuilding, defence and engineering services company.

The Sharjah-based contractor delivered four vessels to Adnoc L&S in May and two in June. The Dutch group has previously provided the Adnoc Group with 33 vessels.

Adnoc L&S is expanding its fleet capacity. The company acquired two very large crude carriers in April, raising its total crude oil cargo capacity to 16 million barrels in 2021.

The expansion is in line with Adnoc's commitment to raise its overall crude production capacity to 5 million barrels per day by 2030.

Earlier this month, Adnoc L&S signed an agreement with the Roll Group to offer logistics solutions for both onshore and offshore projects.

The Dutch company will offer end-to-end heavy lifting and transport solutions as part of the agreement.