Nippon Salvage is to upgrade its fleet with a newbuilding order for an ocean-going salvage tug at Mitsubishi Shipbuilding.
The vessel is a direct replacement for the 2,000-gt Koyo Maru (built 1998). It is intended to meet higher environmental standards and increase salvage capacity to cope with the increase in ship size.
The salvage tug will be built at Mitsubishi’s Shimonoseki shipyard and delivered in the latter half of 2024.
The newbuilding will be 2,447-gt with a length of 86 metres. It will be capable of carrying a large size remotely operated submersible.
It will also be the first salvage tug fitted with a NOx selective catalytic reduction system.
No price has been disclosed for the order.
Nippon Salvage’s other main ocean-going salvage tug is the 497-gt Hayashio Maru (built 2007).
Nippon Salvage, along with Fukuda Salvage, is one of two Japanese international salvage companies.
It works closely with Japanese shipping companies and has been involved in some high-profile cases.
Last year it was contracted for the wreck removal of the 49,549-dwt bulk carrier Crimson Polaris (built 2006) which grounded and broke up outside the port of Hachinuma last year.
Nippon Salvage’s investment comes despite a downturn in revenue in the sector last year.
The International Salvage Union recently reported that its 50 member companies earned $241m in revenue in 2022, compared with $391m in 2021.
