Great Green Gains: Sanford Announces Purchase Of First-of-its-Kind Fishing Vessel

New Zealand seafood company Sanford Limited (NZX:SAN) has announced it has signed a contract with Netherland’s based Damen Shipbuilding Maaskant for the design and build of a new scampi vessel for operation in the Southern Ocean. The vessel will contribute to Sanford’s target of reducing the carbon footprint from its direct operations by 25% between 2020 and 2030.

An impression of Sanford’s new scampi vessel design

Sanford Chairman Sir Robert McLeod says “this exciting new vessel build signals our intention to invest in our core business, to improve our efficiency and environmental performance of our fleet. It strengthens our ability to supply exceptional New Zealand seafood both domestically and to the rest of the world.”

Sanford CEO Peter Reidie says “the introduction of this modern vessel is a significant milestone in Sanford’s strategy for our Wildcatch business. It will be a major step forward in resilient vessel design, which will give us the ability to fish in more challenging conditions. This investment of circa $30 million shows a strong commitment by Sanford and its Board, to sustaining our core business and our fishing fleet.”

The vessel will be built in the Netherlands at Damen Maaskant, the home of Damen fishing vessel build and repair since 1948, with an expected delivery in 2025.

To contribute to Sanford’s target of reducing scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 25% from 2020 to 2030, this vessel will employ low emission diesel/electric power as well as a number of other innovations (see details below) which make it greener and safer.

More engineering facts about Sanford’s new vessel:

• The new vessel will have a new diesel-electric system which works a little bit like a hybrid. It drives the main shaft and propellor with electric motors during normal operations, which allows the diesel generator to operate at maximum efficiency for longer periods of time, as well as sending the electrical energy generated to where it is needed throughout the vessel.
• It will also have electric trawl winches which interact with the diesel electric system and generate power when they are working, helping keep our carbon footprint down.
• The fans and large motors are on variable speed drives. In colder climates in or near the Southern Ocean, the fans can slow down to reduce energy usage.
• Sanford has focused on using a robust long-lasting paint and anti-fouling coating system, which will reduce our paint consumption and reduce solvent release to the atmosphere.
• The diesel electric propulsion system has an emergency “come home” motor for safety. This means that if the main propulsion motor breaks down, the emergency motor will get the vessel home.
• The advantage with its diesel electric motor is it starts and stops diesel generators as required. There is a selector switch on the bridge that can change how the electrical generation is set up, essentially it will use the least power required at any given time and for any given function.
• The refrigeration gas used is CO2, still a greenhouse gas, but far better than the chlorofluorocarbons (CFC’s) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HFC’s) alternatives.
• A scale model of the new vessel design has been extensively tank tested by Marin, to maximise seakeeping and vessel safety.
• Plus, it will have the latest in machine guarding for crew safety, advanced bird protection for seabird safety and enhanced waste management to minimise any emissions.

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