BREDA, NORWAY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 04/10/08 -- Dockwise Ltd., the parent company of TheDockwise Group of companies (the "Dockwise Group"), announces thatDockwise Yacht Transport's (DYT) newest ship, the 687.5-foot (209meter) Yacht Express, left Ft. Lauderdale today with a full load ofcargo: $154 million worth of private luxury yachts. Headquartered inFt. Lauderdale, Florida, DYT is a wholly owned subsidiary of DockwiseLtd., the global leader in maritime transports and installation.The largest vessel of its kind in the world, Yacht Express, waspurpose-built at Yantai Raffles Shipyard in China with asemi-submersible dock bay that allows yachts of any size to be safelyfloated on and off as cargo. "We're proud to announce this first runof the Yacht Express on a regularly scheduled round-trip routebetween Florida and the Mediterranean" said André Goedée, CEO ofDockwise Ltd. " This typically takes 15 days each way. The supership's size and power (it has a service speed of 18 knots) can paredown the transport time to as few as 10 days."
The float-on/float-off process is unique to DYT, which operates threeother semi-submersible yacht carriers. "The first Trans-Atlanticspring voyage of Yacht Express is a great milestone for us and theyachting community," said DYT President Clemens van der Werf, "as itprovides yacht owners with a state-of-the-art transport facility withadditional accommodations for crew who are riding along." YachtExpress is more than 130 feet longer than DYT's other carriers andfeatures such added amenities as complimentary cabins, an atrium withlounge bar and swimming pool, restaurant and cinema, as well asconference, media and fitness facilities.
"I'm half tempted to come back across on the ship myself in thefall," said owner John Walsey (San Francisco, California), whosefirst mate is accompanying Walsey's new power yacht, the 121-footBroward named Java, on the ride across the ocean. "Or maybe I shouldjust charge my crew members for the ride, since this is like being ona cruise ship," he joked. Walsey, who has used DYT'sfloat-on/float-off services a half-dozen times, toured the ship whileJava was being loaded. With the rising costs of diesel, hecalculates that the price tag for the DYT service saves him money inthe long run, not to mention time. "It also allows the rest of thecrew some time off," he said, "and alleviates wear and tear on theboat and its engine."
About DYTSince its maiden voyage in 1987, DYT has transported over 9,000 motorand sailing yachts to various destinations around the globe, offeringyacht owners safe and easy access to many of the world's premiercruising grounds.
DYT has partnered with the International SeaKeepers Society to outfitthe new ship with the modular SeaKeeper 1000TM ocean andmeteorological monitoring system. The SeaKeeper 1000 is a fullyautomated unit that samples, measures, records and transmits criticalmeasures of ocean health--salinity, temperature, oxygen andpollution, among others--to various scientific and public communitiesacross the globe.
Along with area representatives around the world, DYT has additionaloperating offices in Italy, France, Martinique and Newport (R.I.). Apartnership with BBC Chartering and Logistics also allows DYT tomanage safe lift-on/lift-off service aboard BBC's fleet of 140 cargovessels worldwide. The service is for clients who need additionalscheduling flexibility or the ability to get to a destination notnormally serviced by DYT's semi-submersible ships.
About Dockwise:Dockwise Ltd. has a workforce of more than 1200 people both offshoreand onshore. The company is the leading marine contractor providingtotal transport services to the offshore, onshore and yachtingindustries as well as installation services of extremely heavyoffshore platforms. The group is headquartered in Bermuda. Thegroup's main commercial and operational offices are located inThe Netherlands, the United States, China, Korea, Australia andNigeria. The Dockwise Yacht Transport business unit is headquarteredin Fort Lauderdale, with commercial offices in France and Italy.The Dockwise Shipping network is supported by agents in Japan,Singapore, Spain, Argentina, Australia and Italy. To support all ofits services to customers, the group operates three engineeringcenters in Houston, Breda, Shenzhen and provides design andfabrication of specific float-over equipment such as LMU (Leg MatingUnits) and DMU (Deck Mating Units). The Dockwise Group owns a fleetof 22 purpose built semi-submersible vessels of which currently 17are operational and 5 will become operational during 2008.
Dockwise shares are listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under tickerDOCK.
For further information: www.dockwise.com
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For further information please contact:HeadquarterJohannes HeemskerkTel:+ 1 441 295 7149
AnalystsFons vanLithTel : +31 (0)6 51 31 49 52
PressJacqueline van den BergenTel: +31(0)6 22 44 84 35
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