SAAM Towage Prepares to Receive Two New Tugs for El Salvador

SAAM Towage’s fleet will expand further in a few more days by incorporating two new vessels, SAAM Acaxual and SAAM Centzunat, designed by Robert Allan Ltd. They will provide services at the Energía del Pacífico (EDP) liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in El Salvador.

The first step was for SAAM to sign delivery protocol and project close documents with Uzmar, the shipyard that built the vessels. The new tugs were handed over to the Dutch company Redwise Maritime BV, which will transport them from the port of Izmit (Turkey), through the Panama Canal, to their final destination in Acajutla (El Salvador). The journey should begin March 12th and take approximately 40 days.

“We are very happy to receive these tugs with top-of-the-line operational capacities, built under the high quality standards we have seen from Uzmar. The project was a success, despite the pandemic’s particular complications, which we were able to navigate together, while staying on schedule and in concordance with the previously agreed conditions. It was
an enormous challenge. Completing it successfully will help us provide the best service to Energía del Pacífico,” commented SAAM Towage’s Technical Manager, Pablo Cáceres.

SAAM already had a positive experience with Uzmar, which built its Tsimshian Warrior tug, the first IMO TIER 3 tug in the company’s fleet and the first of its kind operating in Canada.

Technical Specs
The new RAstar 3200W tugs measure 32 meters long and were especially designed to meet the needs of the Acajutla gas terminal, with bollard pull of more than 80 tons and a speed of over 13.5 knots.

Each vessel has two CAT 3516C 2350 kW engines and Kongsberg US255 FP azimuth thrusters.

Their design features, equipment and construction meet the highest standards of the “escort” and “fire-fighting 1” notations, based on Bureau Veritas classification standards, along with the highest safety standards for operating at LNG terminals, as defined by our customer.