M/V VI Nais serving southern Bahamas: Cat Island, Acklins Island

 
VI Nais leaving Florida for the Bahamas, which she was tracked doing at time of writing in April 2014 Source: http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/356907000/_:8dc325dcdd106187d11b4d76845acdc5

MAILBOAT NAME: M/V VI Nais
PAST NAMES: confusion with KCT and United Star with which it shares routes
DIMENSIONS: 487 gross tons, 587 DWT tons, 190 feet long, powered by two Mitsubishi S6R2-MPTK2 engines rated 927 hp at 1,400 rpm, IMO # 9489675, Call Sign HO4770,
CONSTRUCTION:
BUILT: Portier Shipyard, Chauvin Louisiana, USA
YEAR BUILT: 2007
EARLY CAREER: so far as is known she has been serving the Bahamas her entire career

BAHAMAS CAREER: Nassau to North & South Cat Island, about 24 hours/$60 each way. Also appears to carry freight for GG Shipping from Florida to the Bahamas, from tracking info & above photo.
CAPTAINS: believed to be Capt. Tom Hanna
FATE: still operating
OWNERS: MMS Ship-management, Palm Beach, FL, USA
NOTES: Flagged to Panama, which would be unusual for a Bahamas-trading mailboat.
 
For photos and an article about the valuable cargoes the VI Nais delivered to the southern Bahamas in August 2011 following Hurricane Irene, see http://www.thebahamasweekly.com/publish/bis-news-updates/Hurricane_Irene_Disaster_Relief_in_High_Gear_printer.shtml
 
From a trade publication: “The on-time delivery of freight is something businesses depend on to be successful.  That’s why Laborde Products  recently put a second pair of Mitsubishi engines in service in Nassau, Bahamas for the Ro Ro Co., which carries cargo throughout the Bahamas and Caribbean.

The second vessel, the 190-foot Vi-Nais, has a pair of S6R2-MPTK2 engines rated 927 hp at 1,400 rpm installed.

Ro Ro Co. owner Tom Hanna chose these engines to repower his cargo carriers because Mitsubishi engines are simple, reliable and mechanical, Laborde says. The Mitsubishis also provide him with much better fuel consumption than the older engines that he had been operating, the North American Mitsubishi distributor says, and Mitsubishi offers an assortment of horsepower ranges in a 6-cylinder engine.

Mitsubishi’s heavy-duty marine propulsion engines are fully mechanical and EPA Tier 3 compliant without the use of complex electronics or any after-treatment, and typically offer larger displacement and more mass than other engines, says Covington, La.-based Laborde, which services a far-reaching territory from Texas to Florida and New Orleans to Minneapolis.”

Source: Workboat magazine https://www.workboat.com/Online-Features/2013/Biz-News—Laborde-repowers-Ro-Ro-cargo-carriers-in-Bahamas/ Feb 22, 2013