OREANDA-NEWS. Okskaya Shipyard launched the seventh serial tanker of Volga-Don max class Project RST27, the V.F. Tanker-17. The vessel is being constructed for the shipping company V.F. Tanker, the project designer Marine Engineering Bureau said.

The contract sea / river deadweight of 6,980/5,378 tons of V.F. Tanker-11 was added by 50 tons to 7,030/5,428 tons. The test speed was 11.7 knots.
 
 The new tanker of mixed river-sea sailings is the evolution of other projects of Odessa-based firm MEB and features increased river function. The vessel deadweight was increased by 732 tons versus Armada series. The double-sides and double-bottom hull ensures enhanced environmental safety. The vessel is of R2 sailing region, or II region due to old RS classification.
   
 The hull form is a product of the scientific work carried out by the Marine Engineering Bureau and Digital Marine Technology in 2010. It was defined with the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD modeling and tested at the towage tank of CSRI of Academic A.N.Krylov.
  
 The tanker is designed for transportation of crude oil and oil products (two types of cargo), including gasoline, with no flash point.

The RST27 project was developed to the class of Russian Maritime Register of Shipping KM Ice1 R2 AUT1-ICS OMBO VCS ECO-S Oil tanker (ESP).

 The vessel’s main characteristics: sea / river DWT - 7022/5420 tons, LOA - 140.85 m, beam - 16.86 m, depth - 6 m. 

The shipyard is to build 15 tankers of Project RST27.
 
 The head vessel of the Project was keel-laid on October 20, 2011; launched on April 27, 2012 and put into operation on July 17, 2012.

 Okskaya (Oka) Shipyard based in Navashino of Nizhny Novgorod region was founded in 1907. The modern Okskaya Shipyard JSC was established through privatization of the state enterprise Navashino Shipyard “Oka”. The firm specializes in building multipurpose river and sea-going vessels. In 2004, Okskaya Shipyard became part of VBTH, majority owned by Universal Cargo Logistics Holding.
 
 Nizhny Novgorod-based V.F. Tanker LLC, a shipping division of international transportation group UCL Holding, was founded in 2001 in conjunction with Volga Shipping Company. The Company operates more than 40 ships of total tonnage of more than 170,000 tons. VF Tanker specializes in shipping of oil products via inland waterways from refineries (Belaya and Kama rivers) to St. Petersburg and further by seagoing ships to the ports of destination.