Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) announced the completion of the hybrid car carrier Emerald Ace at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) Kobe shipyard, an innovative ship which is designed to generate zero emissions while berthed.
Emerald Ace was built as world’s first newly built hybrid car carrier, and is equipped with a hybrid electric power supply system that combines a 160kW solar generation system – a system jointly developed by MHI, Energy Company of Panasonic Group, and MOL - with lithium-ion batteries that can store some 2.2MWh of electricity. Conventional power generation systems use diesel-powered generators to supply onboard electricity while berthed. On the Emerald Ace, electricity is generated by the solar power generation system while the vessel is under way and stored in the lithium-ion batteries. The diesel-powered generator is completely shut down when the ship is in berth, and the batteries provide all the electricity it needs, resulting in zero emissions at the pier. The vessel's hybrid system represents a significant step forward in realizing ISHIN-I, the concept for the next-generation car carrier that MOL announced in September 2009. MOL continues to take a proactive stance in technological development with the aim of reducing the environmental burden of its vessels and operations.
(As published in the December 2012 edition of Maritime Reporter - www.marinelink.com)