Thursday, June 17, 2010

"La Naval" from Sestao (Spain) launched the dredger "Charles Darwin"

Even with a bad weather a launching is always a cheerful event, it is a birth, a new vessel begins to live in her natural enviroment. This is what happened on Friday June 11, when the shipyard "La Naval" from Sestao (Spain), belonging to CNN group, made the launching of the suction dredger "Charles Darwin" for the Belgian company Jan de Nul, under an incessant rain that did not stop a moment during the launching and while having a drink afterwards at the  purposely fitted tent near the general offices.



The guests laboriously climbed, due to the rain, the platform near the ship's bow and after a few words from shipyard's director Iñaki Irasuegui and ship's godmother, Ms. Charlotte Putz-De Nul, the bottle smashed against the hull, the ship began to slide into the water and ... most of the attendees could imagine the beauty of the maneuver, because seeing, what could be said seeing, we only saw umbrellas.


 The top management of CNN was widely represented in this act, headed by its president Pedro Morenés, with a special guest, Bernabé Unda, Industry Councellor of the Basque Government, which I did not coincide with at a launching from January 29, 2002 when, being director of this shipyard, they launched their first LNG carrier, "Inigo Tapias.



  However, as in life, joys are never complete, because after this event the two building berths of "La Naval" were getting empty and so will remain for a few months  until new hulls take their place. It is expected that the shipyard will soon sign a contract for a special ship for the placement of wind generators offshore, about what I recently published an entry in this blog.



 This new dredger continues the series built by "La Naval"  for this owner, with emphasis on two twin units delivered a few months ago, which are the world's largest in their class. You can read here a note about the construction of the first one, named "Cristobal Colón."

 The following table compares the main features of the "Cristobal Colón" and the "Charles Darwin.




Dredger Cristobal Colón Charles Darwin
Cargo capacity (m3) 46.000 30.500
Total Length (m) 223,00 181,00
Breadth(m) 41,00 40,00
Depth(m) 20,20 17,50
Draugth(m) 15,15 13,00
Power(Kw) 2 x 19.200 2 x 10.800

 A few days ago the newspaper "El Correo" published an article by Pedro Gómez Damborenea, Deputy Councellor of Planning and Strategy in the Industry Department of the Basque Government, whose basic thesis I completely agree with. Basque Country is industrial and services to be implemented should be primarily focused on the industry, the shipbuilding industry being one of the important, but it needs to focus strongly on innovation as the only way to compete in the world. I think this is the way that is being taken by "La Naval" and I wish them to deepen upon it.

 I wait the delivery of the "Charles Darwin", the contracting of new vessels and the continuity of "La Naval". They have a great team and deserve support to keep this industry in the "ría" (estuary) of Bilbao.

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