UAE-based Grandweld Shipyard and Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) recently celebrated the launching of the first crew boat as per an agreement signed last March to build six pilot boats and four crew Boats for KOC.

The remaining nine boats will be delivered in June 2019.

The boat, that has been specially designed to meet the requirements of KOC, has been launched prior to the deadline in accordance to Lloyd's Register’s classification rules in order to provide high operational efficiency and safety.

During the launching ceremony of the first boat “BAHRA”, Jamal Abki, general manager of Grandweld Shipyards said: “We are proud to launch the first boat two weeks ahead of schedule, as any delay in providing KOC with the boats needed to meet their customer’s requirements may significantly affect our leading position and our customer’s confidence in the quality of our services.”

“We are now successfully launching the boat, assuring KOC and all our customers that we are committed to execute and deliver our projects as planned and in adherence to the delivery date without compromising the manufacturing quality and the welding power. Our facility has the largest covered shipbuilding area which ensures the power and durability of our vessels as they are protected from exposure to wind during manufacturing, which greatly affects the vessel’s strength and operational life.

“Our Company has developed to become one of the most reputable and specialized companies in the services we offer to the marine sector locally and internationally. We promise our customers to maintain high quality of services. Innovation and creativity are the key pillars that have distinguished us in the market. Accordingly, we constantly develop the designs of our vessels to be multitasking taking into consideration fuel consumption, efficiency and capacity,” Abki added.

Sami Al-Sawagh, marine operations manager at KOC commented: “KOC’s decision to build 10 Pilot and Crew Boats came at the right time, as global markets are witnessing an improvement in oil prices, therefore our fleet expansion will help the company benefit from the next recovery in order to achieve revenues and cope with the increasing demand for energy.”

“Accordingly, this fleet expansion comes in line with the company’s strategic plans to produce 3.65 million barrels of oil per day by 2020. We believe that it will add significant value to the strategic needs of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) plan to cover all maritime operations in Kuwait's oil ports and to ensure that necessary preparations occurred to fight marine oil pollution. Moreover, we are satisfied to deal with Grandweld as they have already built for us four boats over the past few years that are working efficiently with high quality,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service