In May 2011, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering developed a new HP-FGS (High-Pressure Fueled Gas Supply) system for MAN-Diesel & Turbo’s ME-GI Engine. Though there are small and middle-size LNG fueled vessels already, this dual fuel engine was designed for large commercial vessels.
This HP-FGS system supplies highly-pressurized (about 300 bar) natural gas fuel to an engine. To date, existing FGS systems compress gas to a high pressure. This process requires enormous amounts of electricity and large deck area to accommodate the size of this equipment.
However, the DSME HP-FGS system uses another method to supply gas. This system compresses liquefied natural gas and vaporizes it into gas form. With this method, this system can supply high pressurized gas (about 300 bar) using low electricity (e.g. about 100kW for the same amount gas supply) compared to existing similar products. It also is compact enough to be mounted on the ship.
DSME expects its first contract for an LNG fueled vessel soon. Additionally, it has been predicted that LNG-fueled propulsion systems will be also be adapted for use in other commercial vessels such as containerships and crude oil carriers.