Van Oord has ordered the construction of two additional state-of-the-art water injection vessels from Kooiman Marine Group after the successful operation of sister vessels Maas and Mersey in 2021. The new vessels will have the same specifications, supplemented by innovative optimisations. The first of the two vessels will be commissioned in the first half of 2024.

Van Oord is the global market leader in water injection dredging. To provide extra service, the company is extending its fleet to include two additional water injection vessels in this series. They are versatile vessels and offer not only water injection dredging but also mass flow and power jetting systems. The latest technology has also been applied, including heave compensation and dynamic positioning, so that dredging can be largely automated and performed more efficiently.

Keeping up with the growing volume of maritime transport requires both port and waterway maintenance. Water injection dredging removes sediment ‘the natural way’. It is an efficient and environmentally friendly way of maintaining the depth of navigation channels, ports and rivers. Thanks to their manoeuvrability and very limited draught, these vessels are perfectly suited for maintenance dredging in shallow harbours.

Energy management in this series of vessels was given special attention during the design phase. The water injection vessels will be equipped with a hybrid energy management system and will be able to store energy in batteries that can be used later for propulsion and other purposes. Diesel-electric engines will reduce carbon emissions. The new water injection vessels will comply with IMO TIER III legislation for reducing harmful NOx emissions and take account of EU STAGE V legislation.