Electric-powered Damen cutter suction dredgers for Canadian oil sands
Damen Shipyards Group has completed a key construction contract comprising two electric-powered Cutter Suction Dredgers (CSD) for the Canadian oil sands industry.
With both vessels built in Canada, the contract marks the close cooperation between Damen and Aecon, Canada’s largest publicly traded infrastructure development and construction company.
The vessels – called Igor Mazursky and Fitzgerald – can dredge to a maximum depth of 10 metres. Their primary duty is to pump water back to the process plant and to maintain the capacity of the tailings ponds within their design specifications.
One of the oil sand mining sites in Northern Alberta, Canada with the tailing ponds (on the right).
Oil sand tailing ponds
Two newly-built Damen CSDs have commenced operations in Northern Alberta, Canada. The two 40.64-metre long vessels perform dredging duties in oil sands tailings ponds where after extraction of the bitumen - the remaining salts, suspended solids and other compounds, can settle.
These tailings are a by-product of oil sands mining so an effective management of these tailing ponds is therefore of vital importance.
Largest cutter suction dredgers
The considerable size of the project required two of Damen’s largest cutter suction dredgers: the Damen ECSD650. This vessel is capable of production levels of 7,200 m3 per hour at 6.5 bar.
This electrically-powered design receives its power supply from a 13.8 kV ship-to-shore cable.
Modular construction for transportation
Fabrication of both vessels took place in Canada, involving close cooperation between Damen and Aecon. With their broad scope of business interests including a shipyard in Pictou, Nova Scotia, Aecon had all the necessary shipbuilding skills to handle construction.
Due to the location of the Aecon yard, approximately 5,000 km away from the oil production site, Damen’s solution was modular construction – facilitating transportation by truck as well as safe and fast assembly on arrival.
The modularity of the design will also make any future relocations a more straightforward procedure.
"We are extremely proud to be active in Canada", comments Damen Manager North America Jan van Hogerwou. "This important dredger contract not only represents a successful construction partnership with Aecon, but also a continuance of our long term strategy in this part of the world."
This news item was originally published on the website of Damen Shipyards Group.
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More information
Damen Shipyards Group
Gorinchem, the Netherlands
+31 183 63 99 11
www.damen.com