On Thursday 15 November, the delivery of the 5,500m³ trailing suction hopper dredger, DCI DREDGE XIX, took place at Waalhaven in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The dredger was received by the Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) Manager Mr YSR Murthy three weeks ahead of the contractual delivery date.

IHC Merwede’s contract with DCI is for the design, engineering and delivery of the vessel. The company was selected due to its efficiency and reliability in delivering previous orders on time. DCI DREDGE XIX is the first vessel from a series of three which also includes the DCI DREDGE XX and DCI DREDGE XXI. IHC Merwede has previously delivered a total of ten vessels to DCI.

The vessel will be deployed (with others) for the maintenance dredging project on the Hooghly River, which is a tributary of the Ganges River in West Bengal. The DCI DREDGE XIX is specially designed for this task, taking into account the Hooghly River’s soil properties, strong current and shallow depth. DCI’s dredging vessels will have the capability of delivering high productivity, reliability and efficiency as well as low power consumption and operational costs.