BV unveils LNG-fuelled large boxship
Bureau Veritas says that it has developed, in conjunction with Korean shipbuilder DSME and operator CMA-CGM, a design for a 14,000TEU container ship to be fuelled by LNG. The design has been given class approval by BV.
The ship will be powered by an MAN Diesel & Turbo-designed ME-GI (MAN electronic – gas injection) two-stroke dual fuel engine, with MCR of 72,285kW. This is claimed to deliver the highest efficiency among existing propulsion systems and works by simultaneous dual burning of HFO and LNG. In minimum fuel and maximum gas mode around 10% of the fuel is oil, providing overall CO2 emission reductions in the order of 23% and SOX reductions of 92%. When fully bunkered, the vessel would have a range of some 25,000 miles.
The ship is of 365.5m length oa, with a design draught of 14m and a design speed of 24 knots. In the dual fuel configuration a 22,490m3 LNG prismatic tank would be installed under the forward accommodation, and there would be a bunker tank for heavy fuel oil aft of 4,430m3 capacity. The LNG tank would be a Daewoo patent ACT-IB aluminium cargo tank – IMO type B independent LNG tank with PUF(polyurethane foam) panel type insulation.
According to Jean-Francois Segretain, deputy technical director, Bureau Veritas, “The market will determine when these ships can be ordered and built, but this is a real milestone as for the first time we have a fully worked and approved design for a main line ultra-large containership running on LNG. After an in depth HAZID analysis we can say with confidence that there are no technical or safety barriers to introducing LNG as a fuel for long-haul large containerships. Major operational savings are deliverable, combined with very much lower air emissions. And the key feature of this design is that the vessel can also run on HFO if required, increasing flexibility in the period before LNG bunkering is widely available.”
He further explains: “Compared to the same ship with a conventional fuel power plant there will be extra capital cost for the engine and for the LNG tank and gas handling system, and there is a loss of cargo space equivalent to 438 TEU to make room for the gas tank and equipment. But the extra capital cost and the loss of earnings on a theoretical full ship are more than offset by the fuel economies and lower emissions of this design.”
