UAE's NMDC Group Commissions 148-Meter Heavy-Duty Cutter Suction Dredger in China

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 9, UAE's NMDC Group held a commissioning ceremony in Nantong, Jiangsu, China, for the heavy-duty self-propelled cutter suction dredger "Abu Al Bakhoush." The vessel was built by Jiangsu Haixin Shipbuilding Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. It has a length of 148 meters, a maximum dredging depth of 38 meters, a cutter power of 7.8 megawatts, and a total installed power of 30,040 kilowatts. The vessel procurement contract announced by NMDC Group in January 2026 was valued at 618 million dirhams, approximately equivalent to 168.3 million US dollars.

The vessel adopts a self-propelled cutter suction dredging system and is equipped with heavy-duty rock cutting equipment, capable of seabed rock excavation, channel dredging, harbor basin construction, and subsea trench excavation. Its high-power cutter is suitable for excavation in hard strata and can undertake precision excavation tasks in port infrastructure and marine engineering projects.

NMDC Group held the keel-laying ceremony for the vessel on January 28, 2026, at Jiangsu Haixin Heavy Industry, and officially disclosed the procurement contract and construction plan on January 29. At that time, the company expected the vessel to be delivered in the first quarter of 2027. The commissioning ceremony in October took place earlier than the previously announced expected delivery time, but existing announcements do not separately disclose the dates of official vessel delivery, classification acceptance, or first engineering operation.

The vessel has obtained GREEN PASSPORT certification. According to maritime industry information, the vessel is surveyed and classed by Bureau Veritas of France and has obtained CYBER RESILIENT-related certification, with environmental and energy management systems configured to meet the requirements of offshore engineering operations.

The commissioning event was organized by NMDC Group and its marine dredging business division, and was attended by the UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, representatives of the UAE Embassy in China, group management, and representatives of Jiangsu Haixin Heavy Industry. The group's existing fleet and marine engineering equipment exceeds 170 vessels/units. This newly added dredger will be incorporated into the dredging equipment system of NMDC Dredging & Marine, primarily targeting international port construction, channel dredging, coastal engineering, and offshore infrastructure projects.