Kitimat LNG: Construction of a floating tugboat maintenance facility advances

June 23, 2023, by Aida Čučuk

Concrete has been poured for the construction of a floating tugboat maintenance facility that is set to be the home base for the “greenest tugboat fleet in the world,” Canadian shipowner Seaspan informed.

HaiSea Marine, majority owned by the Haisla First Nation in partnership with Seaspan, contracted Pacific Marine Construction to build this floating tugboat maintenance facility that will host HaiSea’s fleet of LNG-powered and fully electric tugs required for LNG Canada’s new export facility in Kitimat.

Besides export, the tugboats will also provide transportation of material and personnel, marine emergency response, firefighting and oil pollution response.

Seaspan said that while the initial contract for HaiSea is to provide the escort tug services for a period of 12 years, HaiSea Marine is building this facility with a long-term vision to serve the tugboats and the Kitimat community for generations to come.

It also informed that HaiSea is inviting members of the Haisla, Gitga’at and Gitxaala communities to take part in a naming contest for the facility.

Crystal Smith, Chief Councillor of the Haisla Nation, said: “We are proud to work with Pacific Marine Construction, a B.C.-based company that operates on the territory of the Wei Wai Kum First Nation in Campbell River and is committed to hiring from local and indigenous communities. HaiSea also recognizes the importance of sharing the project benefits with various Nations and enabling their participation in the region.”

Cory Handyside, President of Pacific Marine Construction, commented: “We are honoured to build a facility that will embody the values of both Haisla Nation and Seaspan and reflect their true partnership. It will also showcase an innovative design as a floating facility which is required due to the extreme tidal range experienced in the Kitimat region.”

In May this year, HaiSea Marine took delivery of the first of three emissions-free battery electric tugs that will operate at the LNG export facility, and it was announced that LNG Canada will begin installing piles at the tug berth facility.

Meanwhile, the construction of the Kitimat LNG project is more than 80% complete.

When completed, the facility will consist of a natural gas receiving and LNG production unit, a marine terminal with the capacity to accommodate two LNG carriers, a tugboat dock and LNG loading lines. It will also include LNG processing units, storage tanks, a rail yard, a water treatment facility and flare stacks.

Its production capacity is planned at 14 million mtpa from the first two trains, with the potential to expand to four trains in the future.