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Rolls-Royce and Turkish shipbuilder Sanmar Shipyards have signed a letter of intent for the supply of MTU engines.

The RAstar-class 2800-E Azimuth Stern Drive tugs currently being built by Sanmar are to be powered solely by MTU Series 16V 4000 M63 and M63L engines and by a Rolls-Royce or Schottel propeller system.

According to Rolls-Royce, the engines of this series are "extremely efficient" in addition to offering low fuel consumption and low maintenance costs due to a high time between overhaul (TBO). They are also said to meet EPA Tier 2, IMO Tier II and ZKR II emission standards.

The MTU brand is part of Rolls-Royce Power Systems within the Land & Sea division of Rolls-Royce.

In a statement, Ekrem Kuraloğlu, Managing Director of MTU Turkey, said: "This collaboration is an important step for us. The Turkish tug market is highly competitive. Sanmar Shipyards is one of the leading tugboat builders worldwide. With this agreement, MTU is now becoming a key supplier of Sanmar. We are delighted with the trust Sanmar has once again placed in our engines and services."

MTU and Turkish shipbuilder Sanmar have been working together since 2009. In 2014, MTU delivered four 16V 4000 M63L engines for two new Sanmar tugboats with a bollard pull of more than 70 tonnes. Now another twelve 16V 4000 M63 engines, each delivering 2,000 kilowatts (kW), are on order for six more RAstar 2800-E Class Azimuth Stern Drive tugs.

Sanmar Shipyards is scheduled to deliver the first tug vessels to the Danish tug operator Svitzer in the fourth quarter of 2016. The tugs, which deliver a bollard pull of 70 tonnes, will be used in terminals.

Sanmar AS is the biggest tugboat operator and builder in Turkey and a leading specialist tug constructors. The company currently builds tugboats in its two shipyards in Tuzla and Altinova.