In this way, the engine’s end user, based P&O Ferries is anticipating the 2011 implementation of the second stage of the IMO MARPOL 73/78 Annex VI emissions regulations.
Worth over $46.3m, the contract centering on the 48/60CR was signed by Jari Kujala, Purchasing Manager, Aker Yards Oy, Rauma, Finland and Prof. Dr. Wolfram Lausch, Senior Vice President at the MAN Diesel Marine Medium Speed Business Unit. The contract covers the main propulsion and onboard power supply equipment for two large ROPAX ferries being built by Aker Yards for P&O.
On the engine side, for each ship MAN Diesel will supply four inline seven cylinder type 7L48/60CR main engines, each rated 7,600 kW at 500 rpm and four gen-sets based on inline seven cylinder type 7L 21/31 engines, each rated 1463 kWe at 1000 rpm. The scope-of-supply is completed by two double input / single output shaft reduction gears and two controllable pitch propellers per ship. The gears will be supplied by MAN subsidiary Renk AG, and the propellers by the MAN Diesel works in .
“P&O has chosen common rail diesels from MAN Diesel due to their inherent reliability and the scope to optimize combustion under all operating conditions and especially at part load,” noted Steve Morant, Project Manager New Build at P&O Ferries, Dover, UK, discussing the background to the contract “This gives us both improved emissions and very useful fuel savings at the present time of high fuel prices.”
As well as the propulsion equipment ordered, for the two ferries, the contract also provides an option for the same scopes-of-supply for two further ROPAX vessels, MAN Diesel stated.
The 48/60CR is the third engine in the MAN Diesel four stroke range to be equipped with common rail fuel injection tech-nology and at 1200 kW per cylinder, the most powerful. With inline 6, 7, 8 and 9 cylinder and 12, 14, 16 and 18 cylinder vee versions, the 48/60CR’s overall power range of 7,200 to 21,600 kW at 500 or 514 rpm ideally complements the 3,360 to 11,200 kW of the 32/44CR common rail engine announced by MAN Diesel at the 2006 staging of the SMM show.