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Arrival of the Pacific Heron
A new PNTL vessel, the Pacific Heron, has arrived at her home port of Barrow-in-Furness.
The ship has been constructed by Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding Co., Ltd at Tamano shipyard in Japan.
The Pacific Heron is a development on the design of the current PNTL ships which provide a safe and reliable service with the cargo compartments protected by a double hull configuration together with back-up availability of all essential systems.
The vessel forms part of an ongoing commitment to provide a dedicated specialist nuclear transport operation. The PNTL fleet has an exemplary record with over five million miles travelled without any incident resulting in the release of radioactivity.
International Nuclear Services Operations Director, Alastair Brown said: “We are delighted to take receipt of the Pacific Heron, the first PNTL vessel built since the Pacific Pintail in 1987. Mitsui are also currently working on two further INF 3 ships which are scheduled to be in service by early 2011.
“The new ships will ensure that suitable vessels are available to carry out future transports of nuclear material between Europe and Japan.”
PNTL ships are dedicated to the transportation of nuclear material and are classified by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) of the United Nations at its highest INF 3 class.
