Wärtsilä’s integrated gas propulsion system chosen for new offshore support vessel
10 December 2012
Wärtsilä has been awarded another contract to supply a complete liquefied natural gas (LNG) package, including the propulsion, auxiliaries and controls, for a new offshore support vessel designed by STX Marine, Inc. The ship has been ordered by Harvey Gulf International Marine as a part of the company’s “Going Green” initiative. The vessel will operate in the Gulf of Mexico’s offshore oilfields.
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STX OSV powered by LNG. Click to enlarge. |
This latest order is the fifth that Wärtsilä has received from Harvey Gulf for gas-fueled propulsion solutions. In October 2011, Wärtsilä technology was selected for two new Harvey Gulf offshore support vessels, making them the first ever US-flagged platform supply vessels (PSVs) to be powered by LNG. The order to supply gas propulsion packages for a further two Harvey Gulf ships was received shortly thereafter. The contract with Wärtsilä for this fifth vessel was signed in November 2012.
Wärtsilä will supply the steerable thrusters, an Integrated Automation System, the Power Management System, a complete Low Loss Concept for the electrical distribution and drive architecture. All five of the vessels will be powered by 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel generating sets capable of running on either LNG or conventional liquid fuels. The switch between fuels can be made seamlessly without loss of either power or speed. Wärtsilä will also supply the LNGPac, LNG bunkering, storage and supply system.
In gas mode, emissions of nitrogen oxide are reduced by some 85% compared to diesel operation, sulfur oxide emissions are completely eliminated since gas contains no sulfur, and CO2 emissions are also reduced. Furthermore, the production of particulates is virtually zero since natural gas has no residuals.
As the use of LNG as fuel became increasingly viable, Wärtsilä expanded its research and development activities into achieving efficient total integration of the entire gas propulsion system. In addition to the engines, this involves the automation and controls, the gas supply systems, and the onboard bunkering facilities, while the company’s global ship design capabilities enables customized ship designs for gas fueled operation. Furthermore, the 2012 acquisition of Hamworthy significantly strengthened Wärtsilä’s capabilities in gas related solutions.
To date 19 LNG powered offshore support vessels have been ordered. Of these, 9 were designed by Wärtsilä Ship Design, 17 are powered by Wärtsilä machinery, and 7 are fitted with Wärtsilä integrated gas supply systems.
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