AAL Shipping (AAL) has recently named its first Super B-Class heavy lift vessel "AAL LIMASSOL" as it prepares for its maiden voyage.
AAL held the formal naming ceremony on April 26 at the CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding Company in the Chinese province of Quanzhou.
AAL LIMASSOL is set to sail on her maiden voyage from China into Europe. The 32,000 deadweight multipurpose vessel is set to carry a full weather deck of project heavy lift cargo, including two 135-metre-long barges weighing 1,650 tonnes and fifteen 80.5-metre-long wind blades.
"Through an excellent three-year collaboration between our own engineering team, CSSC, the design team at SDARI, our sister company Columbia Ship Management (CSM), and the multiple project customers with whom we closely liaised at every stage of development, we have produced a unique fleet of vessels that marks a new era for AAL and set new standards for the project heavy lift shipping sector," said Kyriacos Panayides, chief executive officer of AAL Shipping.
He noted that the AAL Limassol and her sister vessels have been painstakingly designed and equipped to handle not just the most complex and outsized cargoes of today but those of tomorrow — continuing AAL's legacy of investment in innovation and customer-driven strategy.
"Considering the ebbs and flows of the shipping sector and the hard work put in by the AAL team at every level to expand our global footprint and deliver regular trade lane coverage for the global breakbulk and project community, we could not be more excited for the future and the strengthening of our service offering," Panayides said.
The ship bears the name of Cyprus' leading shipping hub and will sail under the country's flag.
Her Excellency Marina Hadjimanolis, the shipping deputy minister for the Republic of Cyprus — who was present during the ceremony — welcomed the m/v 'AAL LIMASSOL' to the Registry of Cyprus Ships.
AAL's new Super B-Class fleet is the carrier's third generation of new buildings and will expand its heavy lift fleet to 27 vessels and a total tonnage of 768,000 deadweight tonnes.
The six Super B-Class vessels currently ordered are designed to be game-changers in serving the industrial project sector. They feature innovative designs and specifications for greater intake and safer handling of heavy-lift cargo.
AAL said these include positioning the bridge and accommodation block at the fore for better sailing visibility when carrying very tall cargoes, a 700-tonne maximum lift capacity via three port-mounted cranes, dual fuel capability for increased sustainability and the revolutionary retractable 'AAL ECO-DECK' that adds 600 square metres to the weather deck, bringing its clear on-deck cargo stowage space to over 5,000 square meters.
Yahaya Sanusi, deputy head of AAL Shipping's Transport Engineering Department, noted that the new vessels, with their two huge cargo holds and three 350-tonne cranes, are designed to accommodate even larger and taller cargoes than those currently handled by other AAL ships.
"The forward positioning of the bridge and superstructure allows us to transport the very tallest of cargoes without compromising visibility. If necessary, we can even stow and transport super tall cargo in the holds with the hatch covers open," he added.
Sanusi further noted that compared to similar vessels in the water, these new vessels have a very high cargo intake volume and are extremely flexible.
"This fulfils the needs of our clients, who can reduce logistic costs by limiting the number of voyages when transporting their large project cargoes. For example, the wind sector is producing far bigger nacelles and towers than ever before."
The deputy head of AAL Shipping's Transport Engineering Department went on to add that the Super B-Class design concept also matches other industry sectors such as infrastructure, oil and gas, and mining.
Sanusi added that the maiden voyage of the 'AAL LIMASSOL' from Asia to Europe is already booked to almost 100% capacity.
