Dual-fuel solution for Finnish ferry
LNG system integration.
Wärtsilä has won a contract from shipbuilding company STX Finland Oy to supply the propulsion machinery for a new passenger ferry to be built for ship owner Viking Line.
The vessel will be the largest passenger ferry to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG), enabling it to claim honours as the most environmentally sound and energy efficient large passenger vessel in the industry to date.
The ship will be built at the STX Turku shipyard, in Finland and is scheduled to enter service in 2013. It will sail between Turku and Stockholm, Sweden in the Baltic Sea. The agreement includes an option for the supply of equipment to a similar sister ship.
Wärtsilä's scope of supply for this contract includes four Wärtsilä 8L50DF main engines, the transverse bow and stern tunnel thrusters, and two stainless steel fixed pitch, built-up main propellers with complete propeller shaft lines and environmentally sound shaft line seal systems. The propellers are designed with the lowest possible pressure impulses for optimal vibration control.
The vessel will be fuelled by LNG, meaning that sulphur oxide emissions will be almost zero, and nitrogen oxide emissions will be at least 80% below the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) current stipulated level. Furthermore, there is a reduction of particulate emissions of more than 90% compared to the emissions from conventional diesel engines, while carbon dioxide emissions are also 20% to 30% lower.
The use of Wärtsilä's duel-fuel engine technology will enable this ferry to sail without restrictions in Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) and Nitrogen Emission Control Areas (NECAs).
Wärtsilä has been at the forefront in developing dual-fuel technology and has recently launched a series of four stroke gas engines. The Wärtsilä 50DF engine is becoming one of Wärtsilä's most successful products, and has been used in marine applications since 2006 when dual-fuel propulsion was introduced. These engines offer the flexibility to switch between liquid fuels and gaseous fuels with no interruption in power generation.
The new Viking Line's cruise ferry will be capable of carrying cars, trucks and road trailers on short international voyages. It is also designed to carry 2,800 passengers and 200 crew members. The machinery, equipment and outfitting, as well as the structural work, will be under the special survey of the Lloyds Register of Shipping classification society.
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