Austal Limited (Austal) has delivered a 50 metre high-speed catamaran to Brave Line under the Company’s first commercial contract award to a Taiwan enterprise, the company said in its release.
The catamaran is the first of two 550 passenger Austal-designed vessels being constructed at the Company’s Philippines shipyard in Balamban, Cebu. The contract was awarded to Austal by Taiwan’s Brave Line in September 2017. The vessels include an optimised hull form for improved fuel efficiency and passenger comfort.
Upgrades to the Philippines shipyard largely undertaken in 2018 have included construction of a brand new assembly hall measuring 120 metres long, 40 metres wide and 42 metres high. This enables Austal Philippines to build large ferries including the next generation, technologically advanced 109 metre high speed Catamaran for Fjord Line of Norway, which is currently under construction. When complete, this vessel will be capable of carrying up to 1,000 tonnes and transporting more than 1,000 passengers and 425 cars at speeds over 40 knots. During testing of her sister ship for Molslinjen, a top speed of 47.8 knots (88km/hour) was achieved.
Austal’s continued investment in the Philippines is a direct result from the increasing efficiency and high quality production of the vessels being produced.