At exactly 2pm, the ship was successfully launched after its naming by Mrs Bernadette Prignon, President of the Liege Court of Appeal and wife of Mr Didier Reynders, Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Institutional Reforms of the Belgian federal government.
The design, build and delivery contract between DEME N.V. and IHC Dredgers B.V. was signed in June 2010 and the new vessel’s keel was laid on 15 November 2010. The ship will sail in October 2011. The Breughel has been named after the famous Belgian Northern Renaissance painter. With a hopper capacity of 11,650 m3 and a carrying capacity of 18,710 tons, this new ship fits perfectly into the trailing suction hopper dredger segment which includes the “Brabo” and “Breydel”, ships that were introduced into the fleet in 2007 and 2008, respectively. The “Breughel” has a 1,200 mm dredging pipe on the port side and will be able to dredge at depths of up to 43 m.
The “Breughel” was designed for dredging in both deep and shallow waters, providing extensive flexibility. Even with a maximum load, it will only have a draught of 8.15 m. With this ship, DEME again confirms that its fleet of dredging vessels offers the best carrying capacity/draught ratio in the dredging industry. It is an undisputable asset in terms of multi-use applications, from deployment for maintenance work in deltas to land reclamation projects with transport across large distances.
The high-tech ship combines all of the latest DEME innovations and developments in dredging technology and will be equipped with a direct pump-ashore installation and a nozzle for rainbowing purposes. The one-man bridge control on the BREUGHEL is equipped with the latest, state-of-the-art console, which combines dredging and sailing functions. With its design focused on minimal CO2 emissions, this suction hopper dredger merits the label ‘best C02-emission/m3 ratio in its class’ and will consequently be awarded a Green Certificate.