Japan’s Tsuneishi Shipbuilding has delivered the first of a new, larger variant of the handysize bulker first unveiled almost two years ago.
The Tsuneishi Economical Standard Ship 42 (TESS42) 42,200-dwt design was built at Tsuneishi Zhoushan Shipyard in China's province of Zhejiang.
In July 2019, the shipbuilder announced that it received the first order for the new design but declined to reveal further details.
However, TradeWinds reported at the time that Japanese shipowner Nissen Kaiun was behind the order, which stretched to 10 ships and was worth $250m.
The biggest features of TESS42 are its versatility and loading performance, according to the Kambara family-controlled shipbuilder.
“With growing demand for cargo transport due to economic growth in Asia, we foresaw the need for a larger version of the handysize log and bulk carriers and developed this ship model, which maintains the compact size of the TESS38 but has enhanced transportation capability,” Tsuneishi said at the time of the design’s unveiling.
While maintaining the same overall length of 180 metres as the TESS38, the deadweight is increased by about 2,000 tonnes at the same draught as the TESS38 and about 4,000 tonnes at full load.
In addition to the three major bulk cargoes of iron ore, grain and coal, the cargo hold can also carry hot coils and sulphur.
Tsuneishi said an optimised hull shape helped reduce fuel consumption per tonne mile by more than 4% compared to the TESS38, while the cruising range was said to have been “increased significantly”.
The newbuilding is equipped with four deck cranes, wide-opening hatch covers, and semi-box type cargo holds suitable for transporting steel products.
It has been built in compliance with the IMO's NOx Tier III emissions regulations and fitted with scrubbers to comply with SOx emissions restrictions.
The first TESS design — the TESS40 — was completed in 1984 as part of a concept to develop a highly versatile ship that combines operational performance and economy.
Tsunieshi has since expanded the series with a number of variations including the TESS45, TESS52, TESS58, TESS64, and TESS98, and has built more than 400 ships based on these designs.
