BMT Nigel Gee Secures LNG Ferries Contract
Naval architecture and marine engineering design consultancy BMT Nigel Gee said it has secured a project through an international tender process to design two 70-meter aluminum-hull catamaran RoPax ferries for Rederij Doeksen.
BMT will be responsible for concept through to production design, and the exterior and interior styling will be performed by Vripack.
Both vessels, which will be built in Vung Tau, Vietnam by Triyard Holdings subsidiary Strategic Marine, and will serve the Friesland Islands connecting Harlingen, Terschelling and Vlieland in the Netherlands upon entering service in April 2018.
The vessels will be powered by single fuel liquefied natural gas (LNG), with both main engines and generators running off the LNG supply. The vessels will offer lower emissions than conventional steel and diesel powered vessels, with at least a 30 percent reduction in CO2 and 100 percent reduction in NOX/SOX, BMT said.
“The vessels will be built in aluminum to minimize weight, thereby further reducing emissions. They will be the first passenger vessels to have the new MTU 4000 series gas engine installed. Bow thrusters will be run from stored power, recharged from shore power,” said Ed Dudson, Technical Director of BMT Nigel Gee. “At 70 meters long with a 17-meter beam, the vessels will also have a very low operating draft of 2.5 meters to facilitate operating in the Wadensee, an area of particularly shallow water. Maneuverability will be excellent with the use of azimuthing thrusters.”
With the capacity to accommodate more than 60 cars and 600 passengers, the vessels will be designed to interface with existing port facilities, and will feature wind generators and solar panels to reinforce its environmentally friendly credentials.
