JEDDAH: Saudi Aramco said a new very large crude carrier (VLCC) entered service with its tanker-operating subsidiary Vela International Marine Ltd. The Homam Star is Vela's fourth double-hulled VLCC to be built by South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co., Saudi Aramco said in a statement on its website Wednesday. The blue-and-red painted ship joined Vela's fleet Dec. 29 and is sailing to Saudi Arabia. It is expected to reach the United Arab Emirates by Jan. 17. Vela's website shows its fleet contains eight other VLCC's built by the Daewoo shipyard during 2008 through 2010. A spokesman for Saudi Aramco in Dhahran was not available immediately for comment on orders from Daewoo. Vela began in 2000 to replace many of its single-hulled tankers with larger, double-hulled vessels, Mohammed S. Al-Gusaier, Vela's president and chief operating officer, said in the statement. The Homam Star is part of this effort. Tankers with double hulls are more resistant to punctures and less likely to leak oil. Vela's fleet of supertankers contains both single- and double-hulled ships, according to the tanker operator's website. Vela International Marine was established in 1984 with four ships. Today, Vela is a leader in the maritime transportation industry and renowned for its safety and operational efficiency. In 2009, the Vela-owned fleet of 22 VLCCs, one Aframax class vessel and four product carriers completed 447 voyages, transporting slightly more than 1 million bpd of crude oil to customers primarily in the US and Europe. The domestic owned fleet carried more than 280,000 bpd of crude oil and refined products between domestic ports within the Kingdom. In addition, vessels chartered by Vela completed 454 voyages, carrying more than 400,000 bpd of crude oil to international customers and more than 280,000 bpd of crude oil and refined products to domestic customers. In 2009 Vela took delivery of the supertanker Saiph Star, the last of six double-hulled VLCCs ordered from a shipbuilder in the Republic of Korea. Saudi Aramco Terminals handle more than 3,000 tankers per year. These terminals are located at Ras Tanura and Ju'aymah on the Arabian Gulf coast and Jiddah, Rabigh, Jaizan, Yanbu' and Duba on the Red Sea coast. All tanker movements within Saudi Aramco terminals are conducted under the direction of highly trained harbor pilots with the assistance of powerful tugboats.
