Building, Testing and Taking Over Suezmax Tanker M/T Dimitri

Submitted by Cheng Ghosh Satya Sunder, currently on board M/T Agios Nikolaos

The beautiful ship M/T Dimitri was built in Samsung shipyard, in Geoji, South Korea.

I, Satya Sunder Ghosh, was one of the members chosen (as Chief Engineer), for the final stages of building, sea-trials and commissioning of this majestic vessel. We arrived in South Korea on 10th November 2022. It was a beautiful day and I still remember the camaraderie and bond all of us felt during the journey from Incheon airport to Geoji.

The pace of building the ship was steady and fast. Two other Suezmax for our Company, were also being built alongside. Our team along with Site Manager Christina Toki, Natasa Sakkelariou, Vasili Moulos, Stratos Palaiologos, Captain Nitin, 2nd Engineer Basavaraj, 2nd Officer Siddhartha and Electrical officer Katoch, worked hard with full vigour and dedication.

Mr. I. Pantos, Director/Technical, joined us during the sea trials and we had a very fruitful discussion on various technical aspects.

The sea trials were fast paced, with all the machinery tried out in 3 days.

During one of the weekends we visited the famous Buddhist temple, Haedong Yonggung. It was a very heart touching moment. The serene atmosphere filled our hearts with bliss. The universal message of love and harmony echoed from every corner of the temple.

The fast pace of work of South Korean ship builders, along with the dedication of Class surveyor Mr. Lee, ensured that the vessel was built to exalting standards. We used to reach the yard every day at 8am and the work was divided among us to oversee the installation, testing and commissioning of various machinery. Every day we walked an average of 20 km.

As the days went on, the temperature started falling until it reached – 2o C. The light snow filled the place, and a different beauty revealed itself. I decided to see one more Buddhist Monastery, Samgwangsa. As the temperature was low, the others decided otherwise and I again went to Busan on one of the holidays to pay my respects to one of the great masters who lived in the temple, Patriarch Sangwo Wongak. The wisdom of the great master was etched in every part of the temple.

Finally, the day of the vessel handover came on 5th January 2023. We took the vessel with full confidence, navigated critical technical issues and finally after few months, I handed over charge to the next Chief Engineer.

All in all, it was an experience of a lifetime.