New Cargo Ship Oleander Marks a Milestone

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A crucial step in the building of a new version of the cargo ship, Oleander has been celebrated from the shipyard in China where the vessel is under construction.

Bermuda Container Line has announced the laying of the keel for the replacement ship, which is on schedule for delivery next year. The laying of the keel marks the “ceremonial beginning” of the ship’s life, a BCL statement yesterday said.

Its arrival in mid-March 2019 will signal the retirement of the current Oleander, built in Holland in 1990.

The new ship, which provides a vital link to the outside world, will be the fourth to carry the name.

John Wight, the chairman of the board at Neptune Group Limited, called the pace of the project “encouraging” for “the most technologically-advanced vessel servicing Bermuda”.

Eighty prefabricated sections are now being assembled in the slipway at Yangzijiang shipyard.

Barry Brewer, the CEO at Bermuda Container Line, said the ship’s “main engine, bow thrusters, auxiliary generators and other key component” had been tested and were ready to be installed.

Soren Hossermann, a managing director at Nordic Hamburg, said the new Oleander would go from the drawing board to a floating ship within the next 70 days.

Mr Hossermann added: “We are all looking forward to the traditional launching ceremony and then sea trials before she will be positioned to Bermuda at the beginning of next year to take up her service.”

Bermuda Container Line, owned by Neptune Group, provides a weekly ocean freight service from New York to Bermuda.

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Source: Royal Gazette