SINGAPORE - A wholly-owned unit of Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M) has won contracts to build two dredgers worth about S$120 million.
Keppel Singmarine is building two trailing suction hopper dredgers for Codralux, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Luxembourg-based Jan De Nul Group, said Keppel Corporation in a statement on Tuesday.
This is in addition to three dredgers that the firm is already building for Jan De Nul Group, based on contracts that were secured in July 2016.
The first of the two dredgers for this new order is expected to be completed in the second half of 2019. Construction of the second dredger will require Codralux to exercise the option within six months from now.
A trailing suction hopper dredgers is mainly used for dredging loose and soft soils such as sand, gravel, silt or clay. The dredged material can be deposited on the seabed through bottom doors or discharged through a floating pipeline to shore and used for land reclamation.
When completed, the two dredgers will be able to dredge to a maximum depth of 35 metres and have a hopper capacity of 6,000 cubic metres.
Keppel said the dredgers will comply with the International Maritime Organisation's Tier III and European Union (EU) Stage V regulations, which set stricter limits on emissions of particulate matter. Keppel Singmarine will be the first shipyard in the world to build an EU Stage V dredger.
Keppel Singmarine managing director Abu Bakar said: "Constructing the world's first EU Stage V dredgers will extend our track record in the non-oil and gas segment, and broaden our expertise as we continue to seek opportunities where we can leverage our capabilities to provide value-added solutions."
Mr Robby De Backer, director of the Newbuilding Department of Jan De Nul Group, added that the dredgers will be "highly fuel-efficient, versatile and productive".
Keppel said the contracts are not expected to have a material impact on the group's net tangible assets or earnings per share for the current financial year.
Its shares closed 0.5 per cent or three cents up at S$6.59 on Tuesday, before the announcement was made.
