Auxiliary Systems News

Kongsberg Maritime has secured a contract with Golar LNG, valued over $25 million, to provide an integrated package of electrical, control, safety and propulsion systems for the Golar MK II floating liquified natural gas (FLNG) vessel.Konsberg’s equipment will form key part of the new onboard systems for a major rebuild project in which Golar’s LNG tanker Fuji LNG, will be lengthened by nearly 100 meters and converted to a FLNG vessel.The work is being carried out at the CIMC Raffles shipyard in Yantai…

Shipowners in all sectors face the same decision: build new or refurbish older tonnage. In the booming cruise sector the decision is more pressing, particularly as new construction ships can take two to three years to build, perhaps longer today with global shipyard orderbooks packed full.When the decision was taken to upgrade the nearly 40-year-old MS Amera, trust for the project landed with BSM Cruise, the technical ship manager of MS Amera, and Wabtec channel partner VMS Group…

Marine News spoke to leaders at three North American naval architecture and marine engineering firms about some of the latest trends impacting their business today. Morgan Fanberg, CEO, Glosten; Robert Ekse, President, Elliott Bay Design Group; and Wade Carson, CEO, Vard Marine, weigh in on topics ranging from digitalization and decarbonization to the naval architect talent pool.How are advances in digitalization and AI impacting the naval architecture business today? How will…

Babcock International Group (Babcock) was selected by Saab to support the design for the development of the Swedish Navy’s new Luleå-class Surface Combatant.Saab, commissioned by FMV, the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration, will design four ships for the Swedish Navy.Babcock will initially provide engineering support including structural design and auxiliary systems, supporting Saab to complete the basic design phase.

Norwegian shipyard Myklebust Verft has been selected to build a pair of innovative hydrogen-powered passenger ferries ordered by Norwegian transport company Torghatten Nord.The design, produced by The Norwegian Ship Design Company for operations in the challenging waters of the Vestfjordstrekninga fjord in the Arctic Circle, received approval in principle (AIP) in August 2022 from Lloyd's Register, who has signed on to class the first-of-their-kind vessels.At 117 meters long with a 120-car capacity…

Imabari Shipbuilding will install a MAN B&W 7S60ME-Ammonia engine with SCR in connection with the construction of a 200,000 dwt bulk carrier for a joint venture between K Line, NS United and Itochu Corporation.The business represents one of the first projects for MAN Energy Solutions’ ammonia-powered engine that is currently under development in Denmark. MITSUI E&S will build the engine in Japan.Bjarne Foldager – Country Manager, Denmark – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “The interest in this revolutionary engine had been overwhelming…

Briston. R.I. based naval architecture and marine engineering frim Bristol Harbor Group, Inc. (BHGI) announced it has hired Kyle Pagan as a naval architect.Pagan holds a Master’s degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of New Orleans and a Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Louisiana State University. For his graduate research, he conducted an in-depth study of the performance of 3D printing materials under the influence of water exposure…

Swiss marine power company WinGD and Japanese shipbuilder and technology developer Mitsubishi Shipbuilding have completed the initial design of an ammonia fuel supply system (AFSS) for vessels powered by WinGD’s X‑DF‑A ammonia-fueled engines.The AFSS design is the first result of a wide-ranging partnership announced last year that will develop solutions for ammonia engines and fuel systems that can be applied across a range of vessel designs.The project will now proceed to the detailed design phase…

Skansi Offshore’s platform supply vessel (PSV), Kongsborg, has had a battery hybrid solution installed that is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fuel consumption.SEAM delivered, and was the system integrator of, its hybrid solution, the e-SEAMatic® BLUE. The 1800kVA/620kWh system was installed in a dedicated pre-built deckhouse, complete with necessary auxiliary systems – significantly reducing the installation time onboard the vessel.The objective of this integration was twofold: a significant reduction in fuel emissions…

The Port of Klaipėda has placed an order worth roughly €11 million for the design and construction of a fully electric tanker that will collect waste from other vessels arriving at the port.The project marks the first large collaboration between Baltic Workboats and Western Baltija Shipbuilding, a subsidiary within BLRT Grupp. The 42-m long and 10-m wide tanker will carry up to 400 m3 of liquid waste. The vessel will have a fully electric propulsion system with 2,000 kWh of batteries installed on board, meaning she can sail at 8 knots continuously for 8 hours without charging.

Swiss marine power company WinGD is on track to deliver its first X-DF-A dual-fuel ammonia engines by the first quarter of 2025, with the first X-DF-A powered vessels in service from 2026.The confirmation follows combustion tests at WinGD research facilities in December 2022 and is backed by concrete orders. Last month WinGD signed an agreement with AET Tankers and sister company Akademi Laut Malaysia to develop crew training on ammonia engines. In January 2023 it announced a partnership with CMB.Tech…

MAN Energy Solutions has announced the successful first running of a test engine on ammonia at its Research Centre Copenhagen (RCC). The company reports that the successful combustion was performed on a MAN B&W two-stroke 4T50ME-X type and produced positive results with particularly promising data regarding pilot-oil amount and combustion stability.Gunnar Stiesch, Chief Technical Officer, MAN Energy Solutions, said, “This marks a major milestone on our road to developing a full-scale two-stroke ammonia marine engine.

The United States is offering up to $1.5 million to aid projects that demonstrate low carbon energy and technologies on board domestic commercial vessels.The Maritime Administration (MARAD) in June issued a request for proposals (RFP) under its Maritime Environmental and Technical Assistance (META) program seeking single or multiple projects that demonstrate low carbon fuels or technology applications for propulsion or auxiliary systems used on vessels in the U.S. fleet. Applicants must be able to verify low carbon operations of the technology during the project demonstration…

Australia-based Provaris Energy has launched a gaseous hydrogen floating storage concept called H2Leo that has been granted Approval in Principal by ABS.The solution has a design capacity range of 300 to 600 tonnes of hydrogen, expandable to up to 2,000 tonnes and will enable greater flexibility and optimization of Provaris' compressed hydrogen supply chain projects under development in Asia and Europe.The floating storage solution is suitable for various hydrogen supply chains and applications…

The $300 billion bunkering market is at a critical juncture due to the double whammy of the geopolitical crisis and the uncertainty surrounding the regulatory framework pertaining to the decarbonization of the shipping industry.“Bunkering has been hit from the trickledown effect of the sanctions against Russia, and this of course has had a serious impact on prices. Pre-war, the global prices were around $750-$850 per ton, and now we are looking at prices above $1,000,” said Alexander Prokopakis…

Norwegian technology provider HAV Group ASA has received preliminary approval from DNV for its hydrogen-based energy system for cruise ships.The system uses liquefied hydrogen storage and fuel cells and was created as part of the FreeCO2ast project, which is currently developing a high-capacity hydrogen energy system that can be retrofitted onboard two coastal cruise vessels owned by the Norwegian operator Havila  Kystruten.The preliminary approval through DNV means that HAV Group…

Companies planning a new ferry build should focus on the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) instead of kW-power, in order to optimize costs, Steeprop, a designer and manufacturer of azimuth propulsion systems, said.Choosing the propulsion unit based mainly on Capex, for example, will most likely increase costs in the long run, adding that a ferry owner can save more than two million euros over a 15-year period by concentrating on the TCO."The traditional way of handling the procurement of propulsion systems…

Finnish fuel and auxiliary systems company Auramarine Ltd announced it has appointed Henri Räty as director of engineering and products, based in Lieto, Finland. As a shipbuilding engineer with extensive experience in project management and technical engineering in the maritime industry, Räty will play an instrumental role in the design management and strategic oversight of Auramarine’s range of fuel supply systems and solutions for both conventional and alternative fuels. Räty joins Auramarine from Meyer Turku…

Caterpillar Marine said it has been selected to be the power solutions provider for Edda Wind’s four new commissioning service operation vessels (CSOV) being built at Astilleros Gondán and two new service operation vessels (SOV) to be built at Astilleros Balenciaga shipyards in Spain. The series of vessels six will be delivered in 2022-2024.Of the six confirmed units, the first four in the series have been contracted to work on offshore wind farms under long-term agreements with Ørsted, Vestas and Ocean Breeze.

The marine fuel market is undergoing significant change. Following the implementation and impact of IMO 2020, we’re now seeing the focus shift to low and zero carbon fuels, and an expansion of other marine fuel options, predominantly driven by the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) impending 2030 and 2050 decarbonization targets. With heavy fuel oil (HFO) the dominant fuel type in the maritime sector since the 1960s, there is no question that such incredible change to…

Höegh Autoliners is setting out to build what it claims will be the world's largest and greenest car carrier vessel.The shipping company said it has entered a memorandum of understanding Chinese shipyard Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry targeting first vessel delivery by the end of 2023.Designed for 9,100 car equivalent units, the Aurora Class roll-on, roll-off ships will be the world's largest car carriers. And their MAN B&W multi-fuel engines will be capable of running on various biofuel and conventional fuels, including liquefied natural gas (LNG).

I recently built a 35 foot Solar Hybrid Electric Wheelchair Accessible Catamaran for my wife who became wheelchair bound a few years ago. (In typing this sentence, I just realized that this vessel can be referred to as a SHEWAC)It is only a 35 foot recreational vessel, but it contains all the propulsion pieces that are found in any other modern hybrid propelled vessel.I have operated the vessel for one summer and have learned a lot of things that I had not considered when I first conceived her.Fortunately…

Cruise ships moored in the Maltese port of Valletta will soon be able to plug into the island's energy grid, drawing the power they require to be fully operative without having to keep their diesel engines running. Nidec ASI, head of the Nidec Industrial Solutions platform belonging to the Nidec Group, said it has secured a  €12 million contract with the Maltese company Excel Sis for the creation of a “shore-to-ship” project at the port. Nidec ASI was awarded the supply of power and high-tech systems and all related engineering…