Colombo Dockyard completes manufacture of pilot station vessel for export

Cutting the rope

• Contract for General Company for Ports of Iraq through Toyota Tsusho Corporation of Japan

Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDPLC) last week auspiciously launched the pilot station vessel, ‘Shatt Al-Arab’, being built for General Company for Ports of Iraq (GCPI) as per an agreement signed with Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) of Japan funded under Japanese ODA Loans by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). 

The ceremonial launching is the process of floating or transferring the vessel to water for the first time. Symbolically this is done by breaking a ‘pot of milk’ according to Sri Lankan traditions over the ship’s bow area inviting good luck to the vessel, the crew and the owners and subsequently filling the dock with sea water enabling the vessel to float. 

The ceremony was graced by Ali Abdulimam Abdulrazzaq Al-Badran, Amjed Saeed Mohsin Al-Chalabi, Site Engineers from GCPI, G.G. Thilekaratne, representative for TTC, Ali Alakus Site Manager of Project from Nippon Koei Co. Ltd. Amjed Saeed Mohsin Al-Chalabi of GCPI performed the honour of cutting the rope to break the milk pot and launch the vessel.

Madhawa Fonseka, Manager-Colombo Office and Vishal Chowdary, in-charge of project and Roshen Sanjeewa Colombo Office Surveyor attended this event representing the Classification Society ClassNK. 

From CDPLC, Hideaki Tanaka (Chairman), D.V. Abeysinghe (MD/CEO), K. Kanaya (Director), S. Asai (Technical Advisor/Alt Director) and a host of other senior management and staff participated at this momentous occasion.

The pilot station vessel is a twin hull Catamaran type vessel which will be used to transport of pilots and provisions, to provide pilots with accommodation services and to provide station and necessary support for pilot boats. This is a 52.4m length vessel with a breadth of 18m and a depth of 6.1m. The vessel is driven by two powerful diesel engines and shall develop a speed of 14 knots. The vessel shall be fully air-conditioned and shall provide accommodation for 47 persons. 

CDPLC has already launched a Buoy Tender Vessel (BTV), which is designed to be operated to retrieve and launch marine navigation buoys, to provide repair and maintenance to marine navigation buoy, to transport marine navigation buoys and/or spare parts and to transport general cargo, on 22 July 2020. Both BTV and PSV will be delivered within the year 2021. 

These projects which are vital to the socioeconomic development of Iraq will strengthen the relationship with Republic of Iraq, one of Sri Lanka’s close allies for decades and we are confident that with these shipbuilding projects generating from TTC Japan which are funded by JICA, will dawn in a new era in the bilateral economic sphere of the relationship between Sri Lanka and Japan.

This ceremony was organised and conducted in a modest scale and in a simple manner paying special attention to the Government’s health and safety guidelines placed in view of the COVID-19 outbreak, depicting CDPLC’s corporate social responsibility towards the prevention of any possible transmission of the COVID-19 at workplaces. 

Colombo Dockyard PLC is a flag ship investment of Japan and operates in joint collaboration with Onomichi Dockyard Company Limited of Japan. Also, the Sri Lankan Government institutions hold more than 35% stake at CDPLC. 

As the leader of the shipbuilding and repairing industry in Sri Lanka, CDPLC continuously proves its excellence by successfully securing shipbuilding projects and Repairing vessels both local and overseas. 

Colombo Dockyard PLC is Sri Lanka’s front runner of its industrialisation drive.

 Aerial view of the pilot station vessel

Pilot station vessel