The Saipem 7000, the world's third-largest semi-submersible crane vessel, transited Türkiye’s Bosphorus Strait on Wednesday during its voyage from Libya to Romania.
The vessel, which departed from Libya’s Bouri Port and is bound for the Romanian port of Constanta, entered the Bosphorus at approximately 5:25 a.m. local time while being towed by the U.K.-flagged anchor handling vessel Pacific Discovery and the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged tugboat GH Discovery.
Measuring 198 meters in length, standing 135 meters high and weighing 117,812 gross tons, the Saipem 7000 is capable of laying pipelines in waters deeper than 2,000 meters and lifting structures weighing up to 14,000 tons in a single operation using its twin-crane system.
The offshore construction vessel was escorted through the strategic waterway by tugboats, pilot teams and emergency response assets deployed by Türkiye’s coastal authorities.At the southern entrance of the Bosphorus, the vessel was accompanied by the Nene Hatun, Türkiye’s largest emergency response, search-and-rescue and firefighting vessel operated by the General Directorate of Coastal Safety.
Maritime traffic in the Bosphorus was temporarily suspended in both directions to facilitate the transit through one of the world's busiest shipping routes.
Footage showed the massive crane vessel navigating the strait under close supervision as authorities coordinated the complex passage operation.
Vessel lowers height to pass beneath Istanbul bridges
To safely clear Istanbul’s suspension bridges, the Saipem 7000 took on ballast water and lowered its cranes and tower structures, reducing its height to approximately 57 meters.
The vessel is among the world's largest semi-submersible crane ships and is widely used in offshore energy, heavy-lift and subsea construction projects around the world.
The Saipem 7000 is also familiar with Turkish waters. During the Blue Stream natural gas project linking Russia and Türkiye, the vessel laid a 24-inch pipeline in the Black Sea at a record depth of 2,150 meters.
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