Mature Technology News

The industry consortium behind the Ocean Charger project, led by Vard, has completed the demonstration of the charging solution in a port as well the connection solution offshore, proving the technology designed to supply clean power to offshore wind vessels is ready for the market.By connecting vessels to the power grid in the wind farm and charging batteries regularly, the Ocean Charger solution is securing availability of emission-free vessel operations.The Ocean Charger has proved through the tests that it can power operations at the field without using any additional energy sources…

Carbon capture and storage has emerged as flashpoint at the UN climate conference in Dubai about how big a role it is destined to play in reaching the target of net zero emissions.It has also prompted an unusual and bad-tempered confrontation between senior officials at the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).In the run up to the conference, the IEA called on oil and gas producers to let go of "the illusion that implausibly…

A project aimed developing a solution to charge offshore vessels' batteries in the offshore wind farms was officially launched at a kick-off ceremony in Ålesund, Norway on Thursday.The project, called the Ocean Charger will be lead by Vard, with its sister companies Seaonics and Vard Electro, and partners Rem Offshore, Solstad Offshore, SINTEF Energi, SINTEF Ocean, DigiCat, Sustainable Energy, Equinor, Source Galileo Norge, Corvus Energy, Plug, Shoreline, Sustainable Energy, University of Bergen…

Long-term MAN Energy Solutions licensee Mitsui E&S Machinery has won another contract to supply the individual MAN B&W 6G50ME-LGIM (-Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) engine for a 65,700 dwt bulk carrier slated for construction at Tsuneishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. The vessel represents the latest methanol-fueled engine ordered by the bulk carrier segment in recent weeks.Sachio Okumura, Representative Director and President & Executive Officer of Tsuneishi Shipbuilding, said, “For Tsuneishi Shipbuilding…

A methanol dual fuel 300,000 DWT crude oil carrier (VLCC) has received Approval In Principle (AIP) from classification society Korean Register (KR).The methanol dual-fuel VLCC, which was developed under a joint project between KR and shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), is powered by methanol and marine gas oil (MGO). HHI has developed the vessel so that the methanol fuel tank can be placed in either the open deck or the cargo area and KR has verified the safety and suitability of the vessel’s design…

Floating nuclear power plants (FNPPs) may not immediately spring to mind as providing a solution to several of today’s key global challenges – but FNPP development is emerging as a means of decentralized stand-alone production of cost competitive hydrogen-based fuels and clean electricity and water, according to a new report by Intelatus Global Partners.The commercial case for deployment of FNPPs featuring small modular reactors is founded in the growing demand for hydrogen and…

Ocean mapping at scale is the target of a new unmanned systems player started by two ex-US Navy SEALS. They have big ambitions, from new building unmanned vehicles to creating the intelligence that will drive them to changing how accessible ocean data is. Elaine Maslin learned more. The pace of change in the ocean mapping space has been fast in recent years. New entrants have come into the scene offering “force multiplier” mapping using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and unmanned surface vessels (USVs).

MAN Energy Solutions announced that the first ME-GI engine featuring its newly-developed pump vaporizer unit (PVU) has completed liquefied natural gas (LNG) trials in Korea.The engine is installed aboard the first in a series of six neo-Panamax boxships—built by Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI), and ordered by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS), the Singapore-based shipping company—each powered by individual MAN B&W 11G90ME-GI main engines. French container shipping company CMA CGM has already chartered the vessel…

Mk II ME-GI and Otto-cycle ME-GA recently added to two-stroke portfolio MAN Energy Solutions reports that its portfolio of two-stroke, dual-fuel engines has accumulated 1 million operating hours.Bjarne Foldager – Senior Vice President, Head of Two-Stroke Business at MAN Energy Solutions – said: “This significant milestone owes everything to the dual fuel strategy we have laid over the past decade.”MAN Energy Solutions’ ME-GI (-Gas Injection) and ME-LGI (-Liquid Gas Injection) engines form the core of its two-stroke…

When the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 2019, the maritime world enters a bold new era of emission reduction. With its growing fleet of methanol fueled ship and more than 60,000 hours of operating experience under its belt, Waterfront Shipping Company has a five-year headstart.As a general rule, shipowners are remiss to share insights on their operations, lest their competitors catch wind and leverage the same technology and savings. The case of Waterfront Shipping Company Ltd.

Dynamic Positioning has been around for a while, it is evolving and it is here to stay. Here to sort it all out are two of industry’s more familiar stakeholders who also explain what might come next.When it comes to critical offshore operations and vessel handling, this is not your grandfather’s marine industry, and it hasn’t been for some time. That’s because the bridge layout and equipment commonly found on any recently delivered offshore service vessel would be unfamiliar to the typical deck officer of just 20 years ago. Much of that can be attributed to the advent of dynamic positioning equipment systems.DP – perhaps like no other skill at sea – has changed the role of the deck officer. The technical requirements to qualify and operate this equipment are vast.

Ingeteam, a leading supplier of electrical conversion equipment, has announced that it received DNV GL’s certification for its IngeconWind stator-equipped 2MW DFIG converter. With this latest achievement, Ingeteam completes the range of its products covered under DNV GL certification, such as the medium voltage full power converters and the statorless DFIG converters; and demonstrates its ability to consistently meet DNV GL’s quality and safety requirements across multiple drive-train topologies.

Four new vessels powered by methanol fuel will be built in Korea following investment from maritime industry stakeholders Waterfront Shipping Company Ltd. (WFS), Marinvest/Skagerack Invest (Marinvest), IINO Kaiun Kaisha, Ltd. (IINO), Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Mitsui) and the NYK Group (NYK). The four 49,000 dead weight tonne newbuilds will be built at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard for delivery in 2019. They will be powered by MAN B&W ME-LGI two-stroke dual-fuel engines that can run on methanol, fuel oil, marine diesel oil or gas oil.

Project partners BHP, Fortescue, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), Rio Tinto, SDARI, U-Ming, Woodside, and DNV GL presented the results from stage one of their “Green Corridor” joint industry project (JIP), which demonstrated the commercial potential and technical feasibility of bulkers fueled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the iron ore and coal trade between Australia and China. The result is an LNG-fueled Newcastlemax design which is in the process of receiving Approval in Principle (AiP) from DNV GL. The idea of developing LNG-fueling infrastructure for the vessels operating on the Australia–China iron ore and coal trade route has been contemplated by major charterers, ship owners and operators for many years.

A landmark deal to use British taxpayers' money to build a 16 billion pound ($25.6 billion) nuclear power station has triggered opposition from a quarter of EU policy-makers, who want to overturn approval from the top European regulator, EU sources said. The European Commission, the EU executive, said last month it would approve the British scheme involving French utility EDF , confirming a Reuters report. A copy of the draft decision seen by Reuters shows the Commission has accepted the plan with some changes that would ensure the British government and British taxpayer would get a bigger share of any windfall profits and EDF a smaller take.

PPG Industries’ protective and marine coatings (PMC) business is celebrating the 20th anniversary of polysiloxane coatings, for which PPG was granted the first patent on Jan. 4, 1994. Tim Knavish, PPG vice president, protective and marine coatings, said polysiloxane coatings have revolutionized the protective and marine coatings industry, expanding into applications such as civil infrastructure, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), government, water and wastewater, petrochemical, offshore, rail, power generation and wind energy.

Followers of the Ballast Water Treatement System (BWTS) situation (ie. presumably anyone reading this publication) were heartened last month when the U.S Coast Guard announced its acceptance of nine BWTS as Alternate Management Systems (AMS), helping to finally bring some clarity to ship owners, yards and suppliers. On April 15, 2013, the USCG announced the acceptance of the ballast water treatment systems as AMS in compliance with the service’s March 2012 final rule for Standards for Living Organisms in Ships’ Ballast Water Discharged (SLOSBWD) in U.S. waters.

By James R. International Maritime Associates, Inc. Floating production has evolved to a mature technology that opens for development oil and gas reservoirs that would be otherwise impossible or uneconomic to tap. The technology enables production far beyond the depth constraints of fixed platforms, generally considered to be 1,400 ft. (426.7 m), and provides a flexible solution for developing short-lived fields with marginal reserves and fields in remote locations where installation of a fixed facility would be difficult. Floating production systems vary greatly in appearance - from ship-shape FPSO vessels to multi hull production semis to cylindrical shaped production spars.

Implications on U.S. The next round of emission regulations will bring significant impacts to the design, construction, and operation of U.S. commercial and government vessels starting in 2014. The impending EPA Tier 4 regulations directly apply to high and medium-speed diesel engines used in workboats, ferries, small cargo ships, and government vessels. These regulations represent the most significant reduction of marine emission levels to date, specifically in the form of nitrogen oxides (NOx). Natural gas fueled engines present one path to compliance, but not the only path.