AET, one of the world’s leading petroleum tanker owners and operators, took delivery of Eagle Pilar today, a new Suezmax second generation Dynamic Positioning (DP2) Shuttle Tanker which has been purpose built for long-term charter to Brazil Shipping I Limited, a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc.

Eagle Pilar has been successfully delivered to AET by Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) in South Korea. The vessel was safely constructed at the SHI yard and timely delivered amid the COVID-19 outbreak with all extra health and safety precautions taken by AET and the Eaglestar site teams working closely together with the SHI team to safeguard the ongoing construction and delivery.

This 153,180 DWT DP2 vessel has been built in collaboration with DNV-GL and Eaglestar and is operating to the highest operational and environmental standards, including full compliance with IMO NOx Tier 3 and SOx emission requirements. Eagle Pilar, by design, is approximately 25 to 30 percent more fuel efficient than the DPSTs built in the early part of the last decade, thereby demonstrating our ambition to align with IMO’s 2030 carbon intensity aspirations. In addition, the vessel is installed with a ballast water treatment system, equipped with electrical driven cargo pumps for enhanced fuel efficiency, high-power thrusters and the latest position reference system fully capable of operating in harsh weather conditions.

On this delivery, AET President & CEO Capt. Rajalingam Subramanian, said:

“Today’s delivery of Eagle Pilar marks our first Dynamic Positioning (DP2) Shuttle Tanker to operate on long-term charter to Shell completing an agreement we reached two years ago. I am delighted that we continue to deepen our partnership with Shell globally by continuously supporting their business ambition with our commitment and capabilities safely, reliably and eco-efficiently operating the DP2 shuttle tanker in what can be extremely demanding and challenging environmental conditions in the Brazilian Basin. Excellent HSSE deliverables are the cornerstone of our business. Following the delivery of Eagle Pilar, AET has another three new DP2 shuttle tankers to be delivered in 2021 and 2022 to Shell. With this latest delivery, AET has also further strengthened its position as a top owner and operator of 11 of these highly specialised shuttle tankers globally and especially in Latin America where we already operate six in the Brazilian Basin.

“I would like to thank everyone from Shell, Samsung Heavy Industries, DNV-GL, Eaglestar, and AET for the excellent collaboration and management to construct and deliver Eagle Pilar during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is another great testament of collaboration showcasing what can be achieved when everyone in the industry works together to deliver innovative and sustainable solutions to our customers while contributing to a low carbon future by reducing CO2 emissions on our assets engaged in meeting global energy needs.”

Eagle Pilar is expected to be delivered to Shell later this month and upon her arrival in Brazil will start operating in the Brazilian Basin joining AET’s six other dynamic positioning shuttle tankers (DPSTs) already operating there for Petrobras. This will bring AET’s DPST fleet in Brazil to seven, with six more DP2 shuttle tankers scheduled to be delivered in 2021-2022.

Globally, AET has 11 DPSTs (including Eagle Pilar), seven in the Brazilian Basin and four in the North and Norwegian Sea of which two are among the world’s first LNG dual-fuel DP2 shuttle tankers with VOC functionality. This is a further demonstration of AET’s drive to consistently provide better energy-related maritime solutions and services for its global customers.