The first of ten Open-Top Eco Generation general cargo vessels being built at the Dayang Offshore shipyard in China for Briese Schiffahrt has commenced sea trials. The OTECO 9000 series of vessels is a further development of the OTECO 5000 vessels in the company’s fleet, like MV Monika. 

The OTECO 9000 is 132.8 metres long and 18.85 metres wide, with a smaller beam of only 17.6 metres at the waterline. The superstructure is arranged on the foreship, therefore the full open deck area of more than 2000 square metres can be used for stowage of deck cargo.

The large cargo hold with a length of about 85 metres in the lower hold and 97.4 metres in the upper hold can be divided flexibly in several compartments by using tween deck panels and/or grain bulkheads.

The basic design and class approval documents have been made by Dutch engineering office Groot Ship Design (GSD).

Delivery of the first three vessels is scheduled for 2023, with the first two being built almost in parallel. The first vessel will be named ECO Titan, and all subsequent vessels will also have ECO T… names. The second and third vessels will be named ECO Trust and ECO Trophy. This refers to the eco-friendly design of this ship type in terms of both ecological but also economical points of view.