TI-class supertanker

MT Hellespont Alhambra in U.S. waters on her maiden voyage 16 May 2002, with nearly 440,000 tons of crude oil.
Class overview
Builders: Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, Okpo-dong, South Korea
Built: 2002–2003
In service: 2003–present
Completed: 4
Active: 2
General characteristics [1]
Type: Ultra Large Crude Carrier
Tonnage:
  • 234,006 GT
  • 162,477 NT
  • 441,893 DWT
Displacement:
  • 67,591 tonnes (66,524 long tons) light
  • 509,484 tonnes (501,437 long tons) full load
Length: 380 m (1,246 ft 9 in) o/a
Beam: 68 m (223 ft 1 in)
Draught: 24.5 m (80 ft 5 in)
Speed: 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph) (laden)
Capacity: 3,166,353 barrels (503,409,900 L)

The TI class of supertankers are currently the four largest ships in the world (by displacement, deadweight tonnage (≈ cargo mass), and gross tonnage, a formula value based on internal volume, not mass). The class comprises the ships TI Africa, TI Asia, TI Europe and TI Oceania, where the "TI" refers to the VLCC Tanker Pool operator Tankers International L.L.C. The class were the first ULCCs (ultra-large crude carriers) to be built in 25 years.[2]

Compared to the TI Class, the Maersk Triple E class container ships are longer and have a higher cargo volume, including above deck containers. The previous largest ship, the supertanker Seawise Giant, was scrapped in 2010.

History

All four oil tankers were constructed for shipping company Hellespont Group by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in Okpo, South Korea in 2002/3. The ships were originally named Hellespont Alhambra, Hellespont Fairfax, Hellespont Metropolis and Hellespont Tara. In 2004 the class was jointly purchased.

In 2004, Euronav NV, a Belgian shipowner, and partners purchased all four ships. Hellespont Fairfax, Hellespont Tara, Hellespont Alhambra and Hellespont Metropolis were renamed TI Oceania, TI Europe, TI Asia and TI Africa respectively [3]

Hellespont Fairfax was the subject of The Discovery Channel's television show Superships, episode "Launching a Leviathan—Hellespont Fairfax".

Hellespont Metropolis cost $89 million in 2002, requiring 700,000 man-hours of direct labor.[4]

Features

The class, each powered by a single HSD-Sulzer 9RTA84T-D delivering 50,220 BHP at 76 rpm [5], possesses a relatively high service speed (16.5 knots laden, 17.5 knots in ballast), which increases their earning capacity. The steel scantlings are greater than the class minimum.

These ships are wider than the new Panama Canal locks. They also cannot travel through the Suez Canal unless on a ballast voyage.

The coatings in the ballast tanks are protected by two features, a full-time double-scrubbing system supplying drier inert gas to the ballast tanks, and also by the white painted upper hull reflecting the sun’s energy. The inert gas system also increases safety. Keeping down the cargo temperatures also minimizes hydrocarbon emissions.[2]

Conversion

In 2009 and 2010, TI Asia and TI Africa met the same fate as the former Knock Nevis and were converted into sophisticated Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessels. The extensive conversions were carried out by EuroNav and Overseas Shipholding Group at Drydocks World – Dubai [6].


TI Class
No.ShipFlagIMO numberDeliveryStatusOwnerNote
1FSO Asia (effective November 2009)
Ex name(s):
TI Asia (effective July 2004)
Hellespont Alhambra (effective March 2002)		Marshall Islands9224752March 2002In serviceTI Asia Ltd
(Euronav)		FSO located Al Shaheen oilfield
2FSO Africa (effective March 2010)
Ex name(s):
TI Africa (effective July 2004)
Hellespont Metropolis (effective June 2002)		Marshall Islands9224764June 2002In serviceTI Africa Ltd
(Euronav)		FSO located Al Shaheen oilfield
3TI Europe (effective July 2004)
Ex name(s):
Hellespont Tara (effective November 2002)		France9235268November 2002In serviceEuronav NVAs of 2017 used as floating storage [7]
Located Port of Kuala Sungai Linggi
4Overseas Laura Lynn (effective March 2015)
Ex name(s):
TI Oceania (effective July 2004)
Hellespont Fairfax (effective April 2003)		Marshall Islands9246633April 2003In serviceOceania Tanker Corp
(International Seaways)

Information obtained from IMO GISIS Ship and Company Particulars [8], MarineTraffic [9], Euronav and branches [10] and Subsidiaries of International Seaways [11] 9 June 2018.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "TI Europe". Auke Visser´s International Super Tankers. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Hellespont Alhambra". Wärtsilä. 2010. Archived from the original on 3 January 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  3. ↑ "Euronav, partners purchase four tankers". Oil & Gas Journal. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  4. ↑ "Shipyard Productivity". ThorCon Power. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "Hellespont to name ULCC's". marinelog.com. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  6. ↑ "List of drydocked FSOs". Drydock World. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  7. ↑ "Statoil charters last of the world's largest oil tankers to hold crude for Asia buyers". Reuters. 28 September 2017. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  8. ↑ "GISIS: Ship and Company Particulars". IMO. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  9. ↑ "Vessel details". MarineTraffic. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  10. ↑ "Contact Euronav". Euronav. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  11. ↑ "Subsidiaries of International Seaways". SEC. Archived from the original on 9 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
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