Adani inaugurates two Royal IHC Beagle TSHDs

On 8 January, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) successfully inaugurated two new 8,000m3 trailing suction hopper dredgers (TSHDs), built by Royal IHC in The Netherlands. Both dredgers had recently arrived at Adani’s Hazira Port in Gujarat, India, after their maiden voyage through the Suez Canal.

These are the 11th and 12th dredgers supplied by Royal IHC to APSEZ and are among the largest in the Indian fleet of TSHDs. Speakers at the inauguration ceremony included Karan Adani (CEO APSEZ), Dutch Ambassador H.E. Fons Stoelinga, Col. Vinod George (COO Dredging & Reclamation APSEZ), and Kees Derks (Area Director Royal IHC). 

“The TSHDs have been registered under the Indian flag and classified under the Indian Register of Shipping,” says Karan Adani. “They will substantially increase our capacity for dredging. These vessels are important assets, as they will also support dredging efforts in other Indian ports and facilitate the government’s port-led initiatives.”

“These are the first two dredgers from IHC’s standardised Beagle series, with a hopper volume of 8,000m3,” adds Kees Derks. “They feature a multi-purpose design, which makes them ideal for maintenance and capital dredging with a focus on increased efficiency and uptime. Extensive training in The Netherlands and India is also an important part of this contract, and product support will be provided by IHC’s local branch in Mumbai. We’d like to thank our valued customer – Adani Ports – for its ongoing trust in IHC.”

The delivery of the two vessels further strengthens IHC’s regional presence, having supplied its first dredger in India as early as 1926. Since then, it has delivered over 100 dredgers locally. In 2007, IHC established its service centre in Mumbai, where a team of experienced engineers service its dredgers and support the company’s customers all over India. 

Recently, IHC extended its service centre with a new workshop, with comprehensive machinery capabilities, ready to manufacture, maintain or refurbish parts and components for the offshore, mining and dredging industries.