Valencia - Boluda Shipyards, the shipbuilding and repair division of Boluda Corporación Marítima, has christened the ‘Sar Mastelero’, a latest-generation tugboat which the Valencia shipyards have built for the national maritime salvage association, Sasemar.

The ‘Sar Mastelero’, is the first of a three-tug series being built at Boluda Corporación Marítima facilities which will be ready for delivery by year’s end. These join a fourth vessel that was already entrusted to the association, part of the Public Works Ministry, in 2008 and shares the same technical features. Outfitted with a powerful fire fighting system, the ‘Sar Mastelero’ is 39.7 metres long and has a 12.5-metre beam and a 5.80-metre boom. With a 4.20-metre draft, it can reach speeds of 13 knots and has a fixed drag of 60 tonnes. Its propulsion system consists of two ABC diesel motors with 8 in-line cylinders and it has a Schottel bow propeller giving it excellent handling. As it is specialized in maritime salvage, the ship features a rescue area and specific quarters to accommodate the shipwrecked. There also is enough room for a nine-person crew.

The launch was presided by José Luis Cachafeiro, Secretary General of Transport at the Public Works Ministry in the company of Ricardo Peralta, government delegate from the Valencia Autonomous Community, Esther González, General Manager of Sasemar, and Vicente Boluda, President of Boluda Corporación Marítima. Isabel Durántez, General Manager of Marina Mercante, acted as sponsor and presented Alicia Martín, CEO of the Corporation, with an honorary plaque to be mounted aboard the tugboat.

Valencia - Boluda Corporación Marítima, through the Societe du Lanamage in Detroit, where it participates alongside the African roll-on/roll-off operator Comarit, has been awarded the pier contract for the port of Tangier Med and its roll-on/roll-off area. For the next ten years the corporation will run cargo ship loading and unloading services using innovative equipment formed by two latest-generation pilot crafts, two pier boats and three vehicles.

Currently, Boluda Corporación Marítima provides services to several ports both nationally and internationally: Tenerife, Huelva, Reunion, Douala (Cameroon) and Saint Peter (Ivory Coast). 

The port of Tangier Med has become the company’s main Moroccan investment to position itself as a port powerhouse in the Mediterranean. With the awarding of this contract, Boluda Corporación Marítima strengthens its position in a harbour where it has been a major player since 2005, when it was awarded a 25-year concession for towing and port assistance. This service continues in full force thanks to four 60-ton towboats with anti-pollution equipment and fire-fighting systems, as well as three pilot crafts to guarantee assistance and service to cargo ships docking at the pier.

The African continent is an expanding market in world trade and an area of great interest for Boluda Corporación Marítima, as it has set up business in several cities in Senegal, Morocco and Mauritania.

Valencia - The cargo ship Lola B, belonging to the Boluda Lines fleet, the Boluda Corporación Marítima cargo transport division, has made its first stopover in the port of Lisbon. The company has therefore officially inaugurated the new route it recently launched to respond to the demand from markets in the Canary Islands served by its ships and that of its customers and international operators. The cargo ship, which left Marín this past Friday on route to Lisbon, loaded up at Las Palmas and continued onto Lisbon, where it docked today for the first time.After loading and unloading operations, it continued on to Marín, its final destination where it stops every Friday in order to set sail once again for the Islands. This is the first time that the Boluda Corporación Marítima hasmade a stopover in Portugal, which will now allow the company to service the entire Iberian Peninsula through its national coastal routes.

The containership Lola B has a storage capacity of 650 TEUs and its technical features include a length of 135 metres, a 20-meter beam, and 8.25 meters of draft. What’s more, it can reach speeds of up to 16.5 knots.

By launching this maritime connection, the port of Marín has stepped up its service with an express route to the Canary Islands, at the same time it helps clear up land routes by offering itself as an alternative to highway transport. In addition to covering Northern Spain, the new route will connect the Las Palmas hub port to the ports of Valencia, Alicante, Barcelona, Genoa and Livorno and African ports such as Nouadhibou, Nouakchott, Agadir and Dakar.