AP-Møller-Maersk’s groundbreaking carbon-neutral methanol-fuelled feeder ship will be powered by a slow-speed, dual-fuel engine from MAN Energy Solutions
MAN Energy Solutions reported its licensee HHI-EMD will supply the world’s first, low-speed, dual-fuel engine to run on methanol within the container segment to South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai (HMD). The 2,100-TEU vessel will have an IMO Tier III-compliant MAN B&W 6G50ME-LGIM (liquid gas injection methanol) engine. HHI-EMD already has experience with LGIM engines, with eight in operation and 12 engines under construction for methanol carriers.
HHI-EMD is also supplying the box ship with two methanol-burning HiMSEN 6H32F-LM generator engines, each rated at 3,000 kW at 720 rpm. The gensets will be delivered to the shipyard in December 2022.
With six to nine cylinders, the power range of the four-stroke HiMSEN H32DF-LM is 3,000 to 4,500 kW, with the capability of burning methanol in the diesel cycle without knocking or misfiring while producing negligible fuel slip.
In May, Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering and Hyundai Heavy Industries were granted an approval in principle for a low-flashpoint fuel injection system by Korean Register.
This newly developed technology can use LPG with a low-flashpoint of -104°C as well as other fuels such as methanol and ammonia, having low-flashpoint fuels in a single fuel injection system.
Built to ABS class, the 172 m long and 32 m wide feeder ship will sail starting in 2023 in the network of Sealand Europe, a Maersk subsidiary, on the Baltic shipping route between Rotterdam in northern Europe to the Bay of Bothnia. Maersk expects the feeder to be powered by green methanol with biofuel employed as pilot oil.
Calling the development of the vessel a “significant challenge”, AP Moller-Maersk head of fleet technology Ole Graa Jakobsen said “While we are pioneering these solutions for our industry, we are working with well-proven technologies and the cost potential from further scaling is becoming very clear to us.”
MAN Energy Solutions senior vice president and head of two-stroke business Bjarne Foldager said “Maersk is displaying great leadership in adopting renewable methanol as part of its decarbonisation strategy – and well ahead of its initial 2030-ambition. For our part, we are designing dual-fuel technology that meets the growing customer demand for sustainable shipping chains and, here, our ME-LGIM engine plays an important role.”
Mr Foldager said the engine designer’s dual-fuel portfolio is well positioned for the multi-fuel future. “Our other ME-LGIM references have proven methanol as a clean, efficient and safe marine fuel that offers a clear path to decarbonisation through significant greenhouse-gas reductions, when produced from renewable energy sources.”
MAN Energy Solutions reports its low-speed, dual-fuel references now exceed 408 units, with the ME-GI recording over 1.7M operating hours on LNG alone, while the ME-LGI platform has accumulated more than 110,000 dual-fuel running hours.
MAN Energy Solutions developed the ME-LGIM dual-fuel engine for operation on methanol, as well as conventional fuel. The engine is based on the company’s proven ME-series, with its approximately 5,000 engines in service, and works according to the Diesel principle.
When operating on methanol, the ME-LGIM significantly reduces emissions of CO2, NOx and SOx. Additionally, any operational switch between methanol and other fuels is seamless. Tests on the engine, when running on methanol, have recorded the same or a slightly better efficiency compared to conventional, HFO-burning engines.
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