ConocoPhillips to Christen Towboat

Later this month, ConocoPhillips will christen a new towboat and, in the process, set higher standards for safety, environmental and design improvements within the inland towing industry. Antonio Valdes, general manager of ConocoPhillips’ marine division says, the new towboat is more capable and efficient, as well as reinforce environmental awareness. The ceremony christening Spirit which received classification from the American Bureau Of Shipping (ABS) will be held at Brady’s Landing in Pasedena, Texas, on January 30 at 10 a.m. Three additional towboats, Integrity, Liberty, Innovator, will be christened in March. The name of the first towboat to be christened is directly attributed to the company’s corporate values. Spirit is an acronym for Safety, People, Integrity Responsibility, Innovation and Teamwork. Orange Shipbuilding of Orange, Texas, built the vessels which have safety enhancements such as CO2 extinguishing systems, fuel shutdowns, fire detection systems and fire fighting systems. In addition, they are equipped with double-hull fuel tanks and five-blade propellers that are more efficient and reduce hull vibration by as much as 50 percent compared to a conventional four-blade propeller. Environmental upgrades will include main propulsion engines that are not only compliant with the International Maritime Organization (IMO0 and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emissions standards, but that will reduce fuel consumption, lube oil consumption and air emissions by as much as 10 percent of the current standard engines.