Gibdock Reports Excellent Ship Repair First Quarter

Gibdock says that its versatility has been in full demand across a wide range of vessel types in the year to the end of April 2014, proving, they say, that 'variety is the spice of life' for the geographically well-placed ship repair and conversion specialist.

Visitors have included both conventional steel ro-ro and ro-pax ferries, as well as aluminium high speed craft, dredgers, tankers, containerships, yachts, seismic survey ships and offshore support vessels. In addition the yard docked the large cruise ship, Saga Ruby, for an extensive package of refurbishment works.

“You can see we have had almost the full spectrum of vessel types in the yard,” says Richard Beards, Managing Director. “This backs up our contention that Gibraltar is an excellent location for the shipping industry generally, and not just for certain niche categories of vessel.”

One of the biggest projects handled so far in 2014, however, has been the docking of Van Oord’s trailing suction hopper dredger, Lelystad. This is the second time that Lelystad has been to Gibdock for repairs and demonstrates ongoing confidence from Van Oord, a leading Dutch dredging contractor.

The high volume of work experienced this year has meant that at times it has proved challenging to keep to docking schedules. But, Richard Beards points out, “We have again successfully managed to deliver what we promised and not one ship has been undocked late this year, maintaining our impressive track record.”