Faced with stiff national and international competition, Blohm + Voss Repair has won the order for the stretching of three ships for ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems' Repair Group.

On January 10, the first of the three paper carriers , the MV "FINNWOOD", will be docked at ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems' Hamburg based yard. The paper carriers MV "FINNWOOD", MV "FINNFIGHTER" and MV "FINNPINE" belong to the Swedish shipping line Rederi Transatlantic AB. One after the other, each carrier will be docked for 28 days to be extended by 20 meters, so that the extension programme will be completed by March 2006.

In the time from October 1 to the end of December 2005, 2,500 tons of steel were processed to produce the mid-bodies, i.e. approximately 850 tons of steel for each carrier. Together with the outfitting equipment, each mid-body has a weight of approximately 870 tons.

Six days are scheduled for cutting the carrier into two sections, so that the first mid-body is planned to be integrated on January 16. The order includes the extension of the on-board dehumidification plant which is required for paper transport.

Characteristics:･ Length: 158 m
･ Width: 25 m
･ Draught: 9 m
･ Capacity: 15,092 dwt
･ Built in: 2001 (FINNFIGHTER) / 2002 (FINNWOOD, FINNPINE)
･ Yard: Stocznia Gdynia S.A., Poland