Swedish tanker owner Stena Bulk will put i[ds_preview]ts ninth newbuilding of the »IMOIIMAX« series in service in a few days. Today, the naming ceremony was held in Guangzhou.
The »Stena Immaculate« was named by her godmother Katarina Ljungqvist, Head of Handelsbanken Western Sweden at the shipyard GSI (Guangzhou Shipbuilding International) in Guangzhou.
A large number of guests, from both corporate management and partners as well as representatives of the shipyard had gathered on the quayside to attend the naming ceremony. The ceremony began with traditional Chinese dance and music before godmother Katarina Ljungqvist swung the bottle of champagne against the tanker’s bows and wished the vessel, her captain and his crew fortune and prosperity on the seven seas.
On her maiden voyage, with a cargo including vegetable oils, she will sail from Papua New Guinea to Europe. »Almost exactly two years have passed since the delivery of our first IMOIIMAX tanker and the vessels are continuing to perform beyond our expectations. The concept has set a new standard for both cargo efficiency and bunkers consumption. With number nine of the13 vessels on order soon out on the market, this tanker will be yet another addition to our high-quality fleet«, said Erik Hånell, President & CEO, Stena Bulk.
The IMOIIMAX concept of Stena
The chemical and product tanker has a length of 183 m, a beam of 32 m and a deadweight of 50,000 tons. IMOIIMAX is a further development of a concept, developed by Stena Teknik together with the Chinese shipyard GSI. According to Stena, it offers several advantages such as extra large cargo flexibility, a high level of safety and »economical fuel consumption – 10-20% lower than that of equivalent vessels when sailing at service speed«.
All the IMOIIMAX tankers will be included in a fleet operated by Stena Weco and will sail in the company’s global logistics system, which currently employs more than 60 vessels. The delivery of the tenth IMOIIMAX tanker, the »Stena Impeccable«, is expected to take place in March 2017. The remaining three vessels will be delivered by 2018. Five of the 13 IMOIIMAX tankers are wholly owned by Stena Bulk, four together with GAR (Golden Agri Resources), two by Stena Bulk’s sister company Concordia Maritime and two by Stena Weco.
