The MEST shipyard in Tórshavn earlier this summer completed the installation of an advanced delousing system for Bakkafrost and is working on outfitting a second vessel for operation in Scotland.
MEST has been responsible for the design, production and installation of an A-frame and a delousing system supplied by Norwegian company FLS on board Bakkafrost’s Martin.
The A-frame is designed and developed to operate under challenging conditions in the Faroese fjords. The A-frame has a height of 12 metres and an 8.50 metre width, and has a 24 tonne lifting capacity. This has been tailor-made to meet Bakkafrost’s requirements and includes a special footbrigde on the A-frame, providing staff easy and safe access so they can get as close as possible to the cages.
The yard also installed on board Martin a delousing system from FLS, and combined with the A-fame arrangement enables Bakkafrost to undertake efficient salmon delousing operations. The system was successfully tested and Martin’s was put into delousing operation a few days later.
In competition with international shipyards, MEST also secured the contract to repurpose former platform supply vessel Bakkanes into a delousing vessel to operate for Bakkafrost in Scotland.
“We are very pleased to have completed the design and installation work successfully for Bakkafrost. On the basis of this successful project we are delighted to have won this new project which is to rebuild a PSV supply vessel into a delousing vessel (FFUV) for Bakkafrost’s Scottish operation,” said MEST Shipyard CEO Mouritz Mohr.
“We are very excited to begin this project, and we look forward to working with MEST,” commented Bakkafrost’s Operations Manager Sverri Kjærbæk.
“We have previously had great collaborations with MEST, who also repurposed our FSV Róland. Bakkanes will be equipped with the same delousing system as Martin. So we are confident that MEST will carry out the project satisfactorily.”
Repurposing Bakkanes is an extensive job and includes sandblasting, painting, installation of four cranes and a hawser system as well as installation of the new FLS delousing system. All timber and steel has to be removed from the deck in preparation for the installation of the FLS system. A new A-frame is being fabricated, similar to the one fitted to Martin, plus four Melcal cranes and winches are installed, plus some changes and adjustments are being made to the accomodation and on the bridge.
