First of its kind

Petroleum News Alaska Staff

On July 11, the first of five millennium class, double-hulled tankers, sailed into the Port of Valdez where it loaded its first shipment of Alaska North Slope crude. The Polar Endeavour is operated by Polar Tankers of Long Beach, Calif., a subsidiary of Phillips Petroleum Co.

The millennium class tankers carry a price tag of $200 million each and are the first crude tankers operating under the U.S. flag that combine double hulls, independent engine rooms, redundant propulsion and twin-steering systems, a separate bow thruster and state of the art navigation systems, Phillips said in a statement.

Four more millennium class tankers, weighing in at 125,000-deadweight tons each, are under construction at Northrop Grumman Litton Avondale Industries in New Orleans. The second tanker, the Polar Resolution, will be delivered in 2002.

Built specifically for the transport of Alaska crude from the terminus of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline in Valdez to the West Coast and Hawaii, the tankers are designed to withstand some of the most severe weather and sea conditions in the world, Phillips said.

“This state of the art ship and the millennium tankers that will follow advance marine safety and environmental protection to levels not seen anywhere else in the world. … This is truly a watershed event in the partnership to protect Alaska’s natural resources and the Coast Guard is pleased to have played a role in bringing this to fruition,” Rear Adm. Thomas J. Barrett, commander, 17th Coast Guard district, said in a written statement.

The new tankers are designed to isolate all cargo, fuel and lubricating oils from the ship’s side by ballast tanks or void spaces.

The Polar Endeavour and her four sister vessels are 894.7 feet long by 151.6 feet wide by 86.29 feet deep. The tankers are powered by twin 15,000 BPH, slow speed diesel engines.

The ships have a 3000 HP bow thruster. Their design speed is 16.5 knots loaded and 17.5 knots in ballast.

The carriers hold just over 1 million barrels of oil at full capacity.

Editor’s note: See the C section of this issue for more photos of the Polar Endeavour.