Trailing suction hopper dredger Isandlwana launched at IHC Merwede's Heusden shipyard

Isandlwana is due to be commissioned in October of this year.

The naming and launch ceremony for the 4,200m³ trailing suction hopper dredger Isandlwana took place on 14 April 2010 at the IHC Merwede shipyard Verenigde Scheepswerf Heusden (VSH) in Heusden, The Netherlands.

The dredger is being built for Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), based in South Africa. The ceremony was conducted by Mrs Beatrice Nkayi, Executive Manager Ports & Corporate Affairs at TNPA.

The contract for the design, construction and delivery of the vessel was signed on 5 May 2008 between TNPA and IHC Dredgers BV. The keel was laid on 16 September 2009. The construction of the ship will be completed at the IHC Merwede yard in Kinderdijk, The Netherlands.

After the commissioning and dredging trials in The Netherlands, Isandlwana will set sail for her home port in Durban, South Africa. The commissioning of the vessel is
expected to take place in October 2010.

The new trailer has been designed to perform maintenance dredging works in the ports of the Republic of South Africa. For this purpose a single suction pipe has been installed at starboard side, allowing for a dredging depth of 30m.

Dredged material can be discharged directly into the sea through 10 conical bottom doors. The load can also be discharged through a self-emptying system, in which the dredged soil is pumped ashore through a floating pipeline, a fixed side connection or ‘rainbowed’, that is, discharged through a spraying nozzle at the bow.

Spacious accommodation with single and double cabins for the captain, the officers and the crew is provided. The deckhouse is fully air conditioned.

Isandlwana is the name of a hill situated in the KwaZulu Natal province of South Africa, 170km north of Durban. The hill was given the name by the Zulus as it is shaped like a hut. Isandlwana Hill was the site of a famous battle during the Anglo-Zulu war in 1879 and has since become a popular tourist destination.

TNPA has chosen to name the new dredger due to the significance of the name to its crew. The dredger will be operational on a 24-hour shift system, so she will become a second home to the TNPA crew. 

Isandlwana has a length overall of 91.00m, length (bp) of 84.95m, depth of 7.50m, maximum draught of 6.00m, maximum dredging depth of 30.00m, and a hopper capacity of 4,200m³.

The vessel has a suction pipe of 900mm diameter and total installed power of 4,754kW. She has a speed of 11.9 knots and accommodation for 24.

The vessel is being built to the requirements and under the supervision of Lloyd’s Register of Shipping for class: + 100 A1, Hopper Dredger, + LMC UMS. SAMSA Class VII has also been applied.

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