Balearia to Have a Second 'Technological Gem' from Armón

Astilleros Armón Gijón has begun preliminary work on the construction of a second "Eleanor Roosevelt" type catamaran for Balearia, according to sources close to the shipyard. There is even talk of a third, subject to financing and market evolution, pending stabilization of fuel prices and considering that their immediate competitors may not decide to enter the high-speed market, which is not out of the question.

The rumor of the second catamaran projected by the Australian firm Incat Crowther has been circulating for some time. It remains to be seen whether the modifications made to the first will achieve the expected results, and everything seems to indicate, at first glance, that this will be the case, although Balearia's "technological gem," as defined by the president of the shipping company, has had a satisfactory commercial outcome, as the majority opinion of its users on the Denia-Ibiza-Palma route also seems to be satisfactory.

Balearia highlights "the exceptional navigation performance and stability in adverse sea conditions" and the dual propulsion using natural gas, although for months now, due to the price of this type of fuel, this catamaran has been operating on diesel, just as the ferries do on fuel oil.

Astilleros Armón will need to implement necessary improvements in the second vessel to overcome some deficiencies observed in the first, which have recently been rectified at the Gibdock shipyard. As previously reported, during the warranty review, the project has been modified to install two transverse propellers at the bow "which will substantially improve the maneuverability of the prototype during docking, where its unusual length among fast ferry catamarans, along with the initial lack of skill of the captains – which has already improved – had shown a certain limitation in maneuvering with winds pushing towards or away from the docking line," according to the Asturian newspaper La Nueva España.

Photo: Juan G. Mata (J&N)