On Wednesday 17 January the vessel "Bro Distributor" will be named by Sweden's Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Communications Maud Olofsson at a ceremony in Goteborg. The vessel, of 14,900 dwt, is the third one in a series of four D-class vessels built at a shipyard in China. The vessels are a new generation of product tankers according to Brostrom's own design and specification, which is developed in dialogue with the company's customers. The D-class vessels are the first tankers built according to the classification society DNV's "Clean Design" class. Qualification for this class requires reduced emissions to the air and sea during operation as well as in the event of an accident. The vessels are equipped with twin propulsion systems which enhance safety in narrow and heavily trafficked shipping lanes. The first of Brostrom's four D-class vessels has been named "Ship of the Year 2006" by Lloyd's List, the internationally leading daily journal of the shipping industry. As a basis for its decision the jury studied a range of factors, including innovativeness, safety, environmental aspects and operational efficiency. "Bro Distributor" is flying the Swedish flag and is the seventh vessel during last year that Brostrom has decided to operate under the Swedish flag. Brostrom's current commercial fleet amounts to 79 product and chemical tankers and 14 additional vessels are on order by Brostrom and its partners. |