Kherson Shipyard launched the first ever Ukrainian tanker

For the first time since the independence of Ukraine, this cargo ship became a serial full-tanker built at the Kherson shipyard. The total value of the contract is about 50 million US dollars.

The vessel is intended for transportation of crude oil and petroleum products in sea and mixed river-sea navigation, with simultaneous transportation of two types of cargo.

In the development of the tanker project design document, the special requirements of oil companies, as well as take into account the additional environmental constraints of the Russian Register of Maritime Navigation ECO PROJECT (ECO-S) were taken into account.

The contract for the construction of three RST27 project tankers was signed between the Kherson shipyard and the Maltese company SVL in 2011. The first vessel of the RST27 project was laid at the shipyard on October 21, 2011. The readiness of the second and third tanker series is now 64 and 59 percent respectively. The transfer of three ships to the owner will take place in 2013. The project of the vessel was developed by the Odessa Marine Engineering Department.

According to the head of the holding Smart Maritime Group Alexander Yurkov, Kherson enterprise plans to consolidate into the niche of the medium-tonnage fleet in the near future and maximize the geography of its market. He also noted that Ukraine's future in the development of high-tech and knowledge-intensive industries, and shipbuilding should become a «locomotive» for domestic metallurgy, engineering and design bureaus.

Technical data of RST27 project tanker:

• Length — 140.8 m
• Width — 16.8 m
• Deadweight — 6,980 tonnes
• The capacity of six cargo tanks is 8,100 cubic meters
• Draft — 4.2 m
• Draft in the river — 3,6 m
• The speed is 10 knots.