Page 25: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (January 2023)

SHIP REPAIR MIDDLE EAST

Asyad Dry Dock in Duqm, Oman, was previously Oman Drydock Company. Its new name re? ects its ownership by Oman shipping and logistics group, Asyad.

Image courtesy ASRY n the 45 years since the Arab Shipbuilding & Repair Willem Moelker is Sales & Marketing Director at Sharjah-

Yard (ASRY) opened on reclaimed land in Bahrain, based joint venture shipbuilder and repairer, Albwardy Da- the Middle East has become one of the world’s ship men. Speaking to Maritime Reporter recently, he described repair hotspots. A broad range of shipyards now ser- some recent regional repair developments. The recovery in

I vice both regional and global markets. oil prices has triggered a wave of new investment, he said,

Regional yards have a ready market, with hundreds of off- not only in oil and gas but also in civil infrastructure proj- shore rigs working across the region together with the ser- ects which themselves generate demand for workboats and vice ships that support them. Then there are thousands of service vessels.

tankers and gas carriers that arrive each year to load energy

Carbon Intensity Climbs Agenda cargoes for far-? ung destinations. The region’s repair yards are in steady demand for routine repairs, surveys, and con- The drive for carbon reduction has now arrived in the Mid- version projects. dle East, Moelker noted, partly in preparation for next year’s

However, the backdrop is changing as the supply of ship COP 28 in Dubai. Local owners are adapting, he said, high- repair capacity continues to increase. An entirely new genera- lighting a recent deal in which Albwardy Damen converted tion of repair facilities has gained a foothold across the region, two DP2 platform support vessels to run on battery-assisted with yards now specializing in repairs across all sectors, as propulsion in a package supplied by Wärtsilä. Scope for sus- well as more complex conversion projects and others linked tainable energy projects both on land and sea are also climb- to renewable energy. ing the agenda. www.marinelink.com 25

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