OREANDA-NEWS. January 19, 2016. The Norwegian ship owner Sulvtrans AS has declared an option for a second Live Fish Carrier vessel to be designed and equipped by Rolls-Royce. This will be the fourth vessel developed by Rolls-Royce for S?lvtrans, one of the world’s largest transporters of live fish.

The Rolls-Royce designed vessel of type NVC 387 is to be built by the shipbuilding company Kleven at their Myklebust yard in Norway. The first vessel was contracted in June 2015 at the same yard with expected delivery in March 2017, while this second vessel is scheduled for delivery in September 2017. 

Announcing the first contract in June, Monrad Hide, Rolls-Royce, VP Sales Europe said: “Sulvtrans requires vessels with the highest level of technology, redundancy and environmental solutions. We are proud to be chosen again to develop their fleet renewal. Our innovative ship design ensures cost effective operations and fuel efficiency as well as low emissions.”

The two new 80 meter long live fish carriers will have a load capacity of 3200 m3 and can each carry up to approximately 500 tonnes of live fish. In order to transport live fish efficiently and in a healthy condition from fish farms to fish processing plants on shore, spacious temperature controlled tanks are required in the hold of the ship. The priority for this type of operation is to get the fish to the end consumer as fresh as possible, and this specifically tailored Rolls-Royce ship design makes this possible.

In addition to ship design and engineering the delivery from Rolls-Royce includes propulsion systems, rudder and steering gear, power electric systems, automation systems, deck machinery and an advanced propulsion control system.

The characteristic bow shape is carefully designed to optimise cargohold and minimise resistance in the water, reducing fuel consumption and the ship’s environmental footprint while improving the onboard conditions for crew and fish.