Damen will supply a floating crane barge to operator Transhipment Services Australia (TSA), which has been contracted to operate the barge and conduct trans-shipment services for Metro Mining’s Bauxite Hills Mine, located along the Skardon River in the region of Far North Queensland. The crane barge will officially enter service in October this year, whereupon it will be tasked with loading Capesize bulkers.
As the barge is essentially a stock build, Damen reports that it has been able to fulfil the order within a timeframe of four weeks. The unit selected is in the builder’s Transshipment Crane Barge 6324 series, which features a length of 63m, a breadth of 23.5m, a depth of 4.5m and a deadweight of 1,720tonnes. It is designed to draw 2.5m and has the capacity to carry up to 238,000litres of fuel oil and 87,000litres of fresh water.
The barge is equipped with a Liebherr CBG 350 crane, rated 45tonnes. Damen comments: “TSA is expecting to load at a rate of 16,000-20,000tonnes per day.” The vessel has been optimised to handle 35tonnes SWL at 12-36m when operating up to 20nm in open sea conditions; or 45tonnes SWL within inland, harbour, river and sheltered water environments.
A trio of 436kWe Caterpillar C18 engines – one serving as a back-up generator – provide the unit’s power. The barge has also been fitted with an anchor mooring system incorporating three anchors and four DMT electric double drum winches. The deck area spans 440m2 and includes fittings for containers.
In addition to the new barge, TSA oversees a fleet of five tugs and six dumb barges which have been supporting Metro Mining’s activities for the past four years. Metro Mining has announced its intention to bump up annual production to cover 6 million tonnes of ore.
