THREE DOUBLE HULL CRUDE TANKERS JOIN WORLD FLEET

The worldwide fleet of double hull tankers continues to grow. Early this month Chevron Corp. christened a 132,000 dwt crude carrier, Neste ON, took delivery of a 95,000 dwt shuttle tanker, and the first double hull supertanker built in Japan has been completed and delivered.

CHEVRON'S GEORGE SHULTZ

Chevron christened the George Shultz tanker Feb. 1 at the Ishikawajima do Brasil Estaleiros SA (Ishibras) shipyard in Rio de Janeiro.

It is the second of three identical 132,00 dwt double hull tankers to be built for Chevron by Ishibras.

Chevron said the tanker will carry about 1 million bbl of crude on each voyage.

Its size will allow it to be used effectively in a number of Chevron routes-West Africa to the U.S. East Coast, Indonesia to the U.S. West Coast, and the Middle East to the U.S.

The George Shultz is part of Chevron's fleet renewal program and brings its worldwide fleet to 41.

Chevron took delivery of the first Ishibras built tanker late last year (OGJ, Oct. 19, 1992, p. 41). The third is to be delivered in August.

NESTE'S MT NATURA

Neste took delivery of the MT Natura from Kvaerner Masa-Yards' Turku, Finland, shipyard. It is the second of two 95,000 dwt double hull shuttle tankers.

Neste and Kvaerner said it is the first shuttle tanker built in Finland, and the only such tanker in the Neste fleet.

MT Natura, built specifically to transport oil from North Sea off shore loading sites to Finland, can carry about 660,000 bbl of crude.

It is equipped with a bow loading station and dynamic positioning system for loading crude at sea. It is ice strengthened and has a double bottom and double hull.

The cargo system is equipped with seven Kvaerner Eureka electrical deepwell pumps, speed controlled by frequency converters. It marks the first time this pump system has been used in a crude oil tanker. And instead of one slow speed diesel engine, the vessel has two medium speed diesel engines driving a single controllable pitch propeller.