29 MAR 2024
Successful trial run & delivery ms Salamanca
Friday, March 29, inland shipping company MerlinGroup and various partners, customers, suppliers, and other guests celebrated the delivery of the Salamanca. During the festive Open Day, the ship was christened. The new dry cargo ship replaces the old Salamanca of partner Danny van Deurzen and will sail for Danser Group and Pro-Log. The Salamanca is the first ship of Concordia Damen’s CDS 443 design, where sustainability and load capacity demonstrably go hand in hand. Thanks to the hybrid propulsion, the ship has received the Green Award Gold certificate.
The 135m x 14.20m ship is an advancement of existing principles of the shipyard and leads to 20% fuel savings. Inland shipping entrepreneur Jan Kleine (MerlinGroup) and co-owner Danny van Deurzen are very satisfied after the final trial run and the open day. Danny said: “When choosing a new ship, greening was a top priority. Together with MerlinGroup, we focus on the energy transition wherever possible. With this ‘next generation’ ship, we largely succeed in this. Because we use up to 20% less fuel, we also emit fewer harmful substances.”
Jan Kleine adds: “Efficiency, sustainability, and load capacity; that’s what we aimed for, but it’s not easy to balance these three requirements. We researched various options. This new ship type from Concordia Damen, with whom we have been working for a long time, comes closest to our wishes, and that made the difference.”
The ship will be used not only in the Dutch and Belgian markets but also for German Rhine shipping. Jan: “In addition to fuel savings, the Salamanca has 10% more 40-foot container capacity compared to similar ships. That is serious profit. Finally, the ship is equipped with diesel-electric propulsion, and it is also prepared for a fully electric system, something we are working on for the future. These features have helped us secure a long-term contract with our customer Danser Group. In short, we are very proud of the Salamanca and everyone who has worked on it!”
Investment company MerlinGroup currently has a fleet of 9 ships and is mainly active in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland.
Heleen Kornet, Marketing-Communications Manager at Concordia Damen, is pleased with the project: “We are very grateful that Jan and Aad Kleine and their partners Danny and Ilse van Deurzen have not only chosen our shipyard again but have also placed their trust in our new design. We are also very satisfied that the favorable ‘speed-power curve’ we expected has been realized. And the beauty of this design is that it allows for adjustments based on customer preferences, both in terms of accommodation and propulsion types. This way, we can easily adapt when customers, regulations, or market demands call for it.”
