New workboat ‘Elisa’ is named

Ports of Jersey has purchased a new workboat, Elisa. The vessel is 6 years old and has officially been re-named and blessed at a short ceremony (on 12 April 2023) in the Netherlands.

The new vessel is larger than Ports of Jersey’s current workboats and will be undertaking commercial work, managed by its Marine Services Team, alongside the Duchess and the Duke of Normandy. She is expected to spend most of her time in Northern Europe, supporting marine projects as part of the Landfall fleet.

In line with a longstanding naval tradition, a ‘Godmother’ was chosen to bring good luck and protection to the vessel. This honorary title has been given to Ports of Jersey employee, Ellie Cousins, who attended the ceremony and gave a short speech. The boat was blessed and the traditional bottle of champagne was smashed against the hull to wish her good luck.

Head of Marine Services, Donford Nicholas, said: “I am pleased to see the continuing success of our Marine Services Team, which has developed a new income stream for Ports of Jersey.  Our small fleet of workboats is key to our ability to invest in Jersey’s future. As always, any profit from our operating activities off-island is ploughed straight back into the business, as we continue to develop and invest in our services for the benefit of Islanders, visitors, and businesses.

“The Elisa was built by Damen, and we hope to continue our business relationship with these shipbuilders as we look to the future introduction of a sustainable tug dedicated to the island.”

Ports of Jersey has allocated a budget of £5 million from its commercial revenues for the purchase and marketing of the vessel.

Background

The Elisa was built in 2017 and is a Damen Shoalbuster, like the Duke and Duchess. The deck crane can lift 8 metric tons at full extension, and the boat’s winch can pull 100 tons. The Elisa will be registered in Gibraltar as she is too large for the Jersey registry.

The Duke of Normandy and the Duchess were used on a range of projects in 2022, in some of the UK’s largest ports like Felixstowe, Harwich, Liverpool, Southampton, and on the installation of a gas pipeline in Estonia.

In 2022 The Duke of Normandy worked 327 days of the year and the Duchess 333 days in her first year.