A new hybrid, water-injection dredger named Maas has begun a program of work on the UK’s River Thames following a visit to the Port of Tilbury on April 27, 2021.

Produced and built by the Kooiman Marine Group for Van Oord, an international marine contractor, Maas uses a hybrid energy management system to reduce CO2   emissions by capturing residual heat from batteries, which is then returned to the vessel’s integrated diesel-electric propulsion system.

Alongside this, the vessel also features further emissions-reducing technology in the form of heave compensation and dynamic positioning technology, enabling operations to be pre-programmed in great detail before any work commences, enhancing Maas’s efficiency.

Other innovative features include an ability to instantly switch between water injection dredging modes from the ship’s bridge and also a multibeam echo sounder to enable online updates of a dredged seabed.

“It’s great to see emissions-reducing ships like Maas make their first calls on the river,” commented Tanya Ferry, head of environment at the Port of London Authority.