Damen design chosen for Ferry Dubai project

The Marine Agency of Dubai's Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) has chosen a Damen Shipyards, Holland, design for the $50 million Ferry Dubai project initially planned to carry three million passengers a year from Dubai Creek to the city's offshore islands such as Nakheel's The World and the Palm Trilogy.

"Ferry Dubai has a spectacular design, a dual base (Catamaran Low Wash), an air-conditioned interior, and comfortable seating for 100 passengers (84 seats as economy class, 14 seats as business class and 2 seats for people with special needs)," said Mattar Al-Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA, at a press conference. "Ferry Dubai will be fitted with three LCD and DVD monitors, three toilets (for men, women and special need persons), and a kiosk for selling gift items and snacks. Ferry Dubai extends 32 meters in length and 7.2 meters in width, and has a designed speed of up to 24 knots per hour. Each boat weighs around 20 tons and is fitted with twin diesel engines of 450 hp."

In the first phase RTA will operate 10 ferries covering four key stations which include Gold Souk Station, Union Square Station, City Center Station and Al-Ghubaiba Station. Phase II will cover Dubai Creek extensions, following completion of the new bridges. In subsequent phases there will be plans to extend the service to link with Dubai Maritime City, the emirate of Sharjah, The Palm islands, The World and The Waterfront."

According to a Dubai press report, Damen "has commissioned a Chinese shipyard near Hong Kong to build the ships."

Technical specifications of the ferries are:

Hull type Catamaran

Hull material Aluminum

Length 32.0 m

Width 7.6 m

Height 8.37 m

Cruising speed 20 knots

Max speed 24 kKnots

Propulsion Diesel engine

Type of engine Caterpillar C 18 ACERT

Power 1,400 HP @ MCR

No of passengers 100