MAN Supplying Engines For Hybrid RoRos

MAN Energy Solutions will supply six B&W 9S50ME-C9.6 Tier 2-compliant main engines for three 238-m RoRo vessels intended for operation in the Baltic Sea.

The customer is Finnlines PLC., the Finnish shipping company and part of the Grimaldi Group. MAN Energy Solutions’ two-stroke licensee – Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (Engine & Machinery Business Unit) – will build the engines in Korea, while Nanjing Jinling shipyard in China will construct the vessels. Delivery of the first vessels is expected from 2021.

The MAN B&W ME-C engines – as part of the hybrid propulsion set-up – will enable a 100% increase in efficiency when measured in terms of consumption/ton of freight transported, compared to existing vessels, the company said.

The new order follows that made by Grimaldi in 2019 for nine very similar vessels with the same scope of supply, and adds to recent orders MAN Energy Solutions has won in the competitive Baltic market.

Designed by Nordic marine designer, Knud E. Hansen, the new RoRos will be among the first examples of a new series of hybrid vessels. These will use fuel-oil during navigation and lithium mega-batteries in harbor, thus guaranteeing ‘zero’ emissions in port – and meeting the Registro Italiano Navale (RINA) Green Plus class notation – while still satisfying energy requirements at berth. The batteries will be recharged during navigation through shaft generators adding the so-called peak-shaving system. The newbuilds will also feature ice-class classification, 1A Super.

“We’re very happy to win this order and to add to our recent successes in the Finnish market,” said Bjarne Foldager, senior vice president, head of Two-Stroke Business at MAN Energy Solutions. “To be able to add it to the previous nine vessels from the Grimaldi order is also very pleasing. Our technology will play a crucial role in this innovative hybrid propulsion system that really points the way for shipping in the future. I look forward to seeing these unique vessels enter service.”

Foldager said the new RoRos will be among the most environmentally sustainable ships of their type.

“These environmentally friendly vessels will be built taking all technological and environmental factors into account and thus will increase our energy efficiency further,” said Mikael Lindholm, head of Newbuilding Department, Finnlines. “We continue our successful track record in investing in the sustainable operation of our fleet.”