Grand Bahama Shipyard Floating Dock Departs Cascade General
Via a marine management contract with Seaspan, the yard has chartered Global Towing Alliance Ocean Going Tug, De Yue. Measuring 299 ft. (91 m) with installed power of 20,800 bhp, De Yue provides a bollard pull of 200 tons from a twin-screw configuration. Initially built as a deep-sea salvage tug, De Yue is owned by Guangzhou Salvage of China and was selected by Grand Bahama for its high bhp and large bunker capacity.
The 20,000 n.m. tow is expected to encompass 170 days with an average tow speed of approximately five knots. Arrival in the Bahamas is expected around Christmas 2001. The routing, which is mapped to avoid major weather patterns in each of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans, allows for stop-offs for bunkering in four locations, currently intended to be Davao or Cebu, Dijbouti or Singapore, Suez or Cape Town, and Gibraltar or Fortaleza - depending upon the final routing of the tow and conditions encountered en route.