HELLESPONT ALHAMBRA Far from a white elephant

Three of four ULCCs ? the largest to be ordered for nearly 30 years ? were delivered to Greek tanker company Hellespont Shipping in 2002. The 442,470 dwt vessels were built by South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo. Their design is based on experience from existing ULCCs, incorporating improved construction standards.

Scantlings have been designed to incorporate approximately 20% more steel than the minimum class requirements to give a potential working life of about 40 years without needing major repairs or steel replacement. Obvious features include a white painted deck and superstructure to reflect heat. Less obvious is the double scrubbed inert gas system.

The ships sail at over 18 knots in ballast and 16.5 knots fully laden on a draught of 24.5 m. This draught is comparable to VLCCs, allowing the ships to get as close to port as their smaller relations. The economies of carrying larger cargoes more than offset the costs of extra load/discharge time and additional lightering tankers, says the company.

A spokesman for Hellespont says the ULCCs have exceeded all expectations, both technically and commercially. All three ships are fully employed on the spot market. A recent charter which demonstrates the flexibility of such large ships, involved shipping 300,000t of fuel oil around the African Cape, he says.

Hellespont Alhambra featured in the May 2002 issue.