Inverlussa picks up second state-of-the-art workboat
Mull-based Inverlussa Marine Services has taken delivery of the second of two aquaculture support vessels built at a Norwegian shipyard.
The Kiera Fiona follows in the wake of the Gina Mary, which was delivered in May this year.
The workboats were designed by Macduff Ship Design in Aberdeenshire and built by Havyard Ship Technology in Leirvik. The latest arrival increases the Inverlussa Marine Services fleet to 11 vessels.
Like the Gina Mary, the Kiera Fiona will go on contract to Marine Harvest Scotland, supporting the 49 sites owned and worked by the company. Their main duties will be to assist with fish treatments and general site work activities.
Each ship was designed to be as "future-proofed" as possible, to the meet the ever-changing technology requirements within the aquaculture market and to anticipate future demand.
'Significant investment'
Inverlussa managing director Ben Wilson said: "We have enjoyed working with the yard and we think these boats should be the best in the market in Scotland now."
He added: “When we made the significant investment in these ships, we had no contracts for them to fulfil, however, it was an important time for us to invest in a growing sector and shows our confidence in fish farming in Scotland. We are delighted to be working with Marine Harvest.
“Fish farming continues to be a success story in Scotland but there are a number of challenges in modern fish farming. As providers of services in this sector, we need to keep pushing ahead otherwise we will be left behind. Being a family business, we have always been focused heavily in reinvesting, whether that be in our crew or the vessels. These two new ships will enable us to steer through any future changes and developments in this sector.”
Delighted with results
This is the first time that Inverlussa Marine Services has used ship builders outside Scotland to build their vessels.
Wilson added: “We would normally use Scottish ship designers and builders, but when we spoke to them last year, they were so busy that they couldn’t meet our timescales. This afforded us the opportunity to buy from the world-renowned shipbuilders, Havyard in Norway, using the designs by Macduff in Aberdeenshire and we are delighted with the results.
"The Gina Mary has already been active during the summer months and the crew love working on such a fabulous ship. We are now looking forward to getting the Kiera Fiona into operation.”
The Kiera Fiona is a near-repeat of the Gina Mary, although at 25.5m she is 50cm longer to allow for salmon treatment operations.
Vessel specifications
Gina Mary
25m length x 9.7m beam
Deadweight – 390ton
Deckload – 150ton
Total engine power – 1200hp
Crane 1x 100t/m & 1x 48t/m
Kiera Fiona
25.5m length x 9.7m beam
Deadweight – 400ton
Deckload – 182ton
Total engine power – 1200hp
Crane 1x 100t/m & 1x 48t/m
