SHIPPING IN THE GAS AGE

At Wärtsilä, we are passionate about

optimising lifecycle value by offering precisely
what each of our customers need. We can
deliver on this promise because we provide
the most complete offering of marine
products, integrated solutions and services
in the industry – worldwide. We help our
customers find the shorter route to robust
growth and bigger profits through operational
efficiency, environmental excellence, fuel
flexibility and services. Even though this
brochure is just a beginning to learn why
Wärtsilä nowadays powers one in every three
ships worldwide, it still demonstrates how
we are able to customise our comprehensive
offering in order to give customers a crucial
competitive edge. What can we do for you?

ADVANTAGES OF DUAL-FUEL INSTALLATION

GAS: A GREEN SOLUTION
In an era characterised by ever more stringent
emission regulations and volatile fuel prices,
ship owners and ship operators are faced with
serious challenges.
Different authorities are setting
environmental requirements aimed
at respecting international standards.
Nevertheless, at the same time they stress the
importance of a localised approach.
So, how to comply with new environmental
rules and yet maintain cost-efficient
operations? A complete range of diversified
alternatives could be proposed but only one
seems to fulfil all the requirements – switching
to natural gas.
Natural gas (NG) is a mixture of different
gases consisting primarily of methane. It is
usually found in association with fossil fuels
and in the past represented a by-product of oil
production. Unwanted natural gas was burned
off at the well site or pumped back into the oil
reservoir with an “injection well”.
Today, natural gas is traded around the
world by pipeline (in its gaseous form) or by
sea in its liquid form (liquefied natural gas,
LNG).
The advantage of transporting LNG is
clear: a defined volume of LNG contains
approximately 600 times more energy than the
same volume of NG. The phase transformation
from gaseous to liquid implies that cryogenic
temperatures are reached.
Liquefied natural gas is the most
advantageous way for gas transportation
and onboard storage, but a change in mind
regarding fuel utilisation is required.
Equipment related to gas storage, handling
and utilisation should be designed in order to
continuously operate in cryogenic conditions,
thereby ensuring the safety and reliability of
the installation.
GAS IS THE MOST AFFORDABLE
LIQUID FUEL
Liquid fossil fuels and natural gas are
traditionally priced by using two different
measuring units.
•• Heavy fuel oil (HFO), marine diesel oil (MDO)
and marine gas oil (MGO) are quoted based
on a price-per-mass quantity, the common
unit being “United States Dollars per ton of
liquid fuel – USD/ton”
•• Natural gas prices are usually set, on the
other hand, by the traded energy content,
the commonly utilised unit being “United
States Dollars per million British Thermal
Units – USD/MMBTU”
This difference is derived from the fact that
liquid fuels have fairly standardised and
constant energy contents, while the energy
content for natural gas varies depending on its
composition.
In order to be able to compare the price of
liquid fuels with that of natural gas, they should
all be harmonised according to a common
energy unit (MMBTU, for example).
Results show that natural gas has always
been cost competitive against other marine fossil
fuels, and its price has consistently been lower
than any other single liquid fuel alternative.
MAIN FUEL FLEXIBILITY
Fuel flexibility gives owners and operators
the chance to select the most suitable

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 Emission
-25% values [%]

100

90

80

70

60

-85% 50

40

CO 2 30
-100%
NO x The world’s first LNG powered PSV, Viking Energy, designed and powered by Wärtsilä, has been in operation for ten years.
20
SOx -100%
10

Particulates 0
Dual-Fuel engine
Diesel
engine
automatically and instantly change to diesel main source of power from liquid residual
operation without any loss in speed or power. fuels to natural gas represents a very favorable
in gas mode

This feature ensures an additional level of opportunity.

Example of emission reduction obtained swithching
to gas.
fuel depending on such factors as local
environmental restrictions, fuel price variations,
and fuel bunkering availability.
Fuel flexibility also represents a safety
feature of particular interest for marine
applications. In the case of an interruption
to the gas supply, dual-fuel (DF) engines
operational safety, not present in a single-fuel
installation.
A unique feature of Wärtsilä dual-fuel
engines is their ability to run on natural gas,
marine diesel oil, heavy fuel oil and bio fuels,
thus providing maximum flexibility in fuel choice.
OUTSTANDING EMISSIONS COMPLIANCY
In meeting the challenges set by the upcoming
stringent emission regulations, switching the
When a DF engine runs in “gas mode”
(natural gas as the primary source of energy),
the following targets are achieved:
•• CO2 emissions are reduced by approximately
20%, thanks to a lower carbon content in
natural gas compared to liquid fuels.
•• NOX emissions are reduced by
approximately 80%, thanks to the lean burn
combustion process implemented in DF
engines.

3

Marine LNG import re-gazification and export terminals.
•• SOX emissions are completely eliminated,
since natural gas does not contain any
sulphur.
Particle production is practically non-existent,
due to the efficient combustion of natural gas,
a fuel without almost any residuals.
In gas mode, Wärtsilä DF engines are
already compliant with the forthcoming IMO
Tier III regulations without the need of any
secondary exhaust gas purification systems.
Furthermore, in liquid fuel oil mode, all
Wärtsilä DF engines are fully compliant with
the IMO Tier II exhaust emission regulations
set out in Annex VI of the MARPOL 73/78
convention.
AVAILABILITY OF GAS
Natural gas is traded in its liquid form via
sea borne transportation. Liquefied natural
gas carriers are moving massive quantities
of natural gas from liquefaction terminals to
re-gasification terminals, all around the globe.
Liquefied natural gas is available at all these
on-shore facilities.
4
Marine LNG import and export terminals are
to be found virtually everywhere, meaning that
LNG is basically available anywhere in the
world. A number of new additional terminals
are planned to come on stream during the next
few years.
WÄRTSILÄ LNG FEEDER
However, as the current gas market is focusing
on big scale production and distribution, very
few operators are ready to deliver LNG to
vessels to be used as fuel.
In order to overcome this problem, Wärtsilä
has developed its LNG feeder, a self-propelled
bunkering vessel able to transport LNG from
standard large-scale facilities directly to the
mooring sites.
When a vessel is powered by Wärtsilä DF
engines utilising LNG as the primary marine
fuel, the gas bunkering activity has no impact on
the time spent in port. All commercial activities
during the port call can be performed as normal
while the LNG tank is, at the same time, being
refilled by the LNG feeder.
Existing or under construction
Proposed
The Wärtsilä LNG feeder is designed with a
diesel-mechanical application Wärtsilä 20DF
engine. The LNG barge uses gas as its main
source of energy, thus contributing to a
reduction in the environmental impact of the
total chain. This consideration is particularly
important since these vessels are spending
their complete lifetime in harbours or coastal
areas.
DUAL-FUEL APPLICATIONS
IN THE MARINE INDUSTRY
The marine applications that benefit the most
from gas operation, are those vessels whose
operations incur a potential risk of non-
compliance with environmental regulations.
Dual-fuel technology is elegantly solving
the challenges set by present and upcoming
emissions legislation without the need for
installing any exhaust abatement equipment in
the exhaust pipe.
Short-sea routers, as well as liners constantly
operating between defined ports, are the main
applications where a propulsion train based on
 EXAMPLES OF LNG-FUELLED VESSEL TYPOLOGIES

LNG FEEDER

LNG SHORT ROUTE FERRY

LNG TUG LNG CONTAINER FEEDER

gas-propulsion offers the biggest advantages.

This consideration becomes even stronger when
the operation is influenced by sailing periods
spent in Emission Control Areas.
In particular, container feeders, ferries
and ro-los represent typical vessel fleets
that could be converted to gas operations.
Gas offers a simpler solution for new built
ships and retrofitting vessels for a greener
tomorrow.
LNG RO-LO
5
 17550
15600
11700
50DF
8775
7800
5850

6960
5220 LNG storage tanks
34DF
3915 2 x 200 m3
2610

1584
20DF 1408
1056

0 5000 10 000 15 000 20 000

Power output [kW]

Dual-Fuel engine portfolio.

Wärtsilää fixed pitch propellers

2 x 10.5 MW

Tarbit Shipping’s Bit Viking equipped with two Wärtsilä LNGPacs.

MARINE INSTALLATION FEATURES

To operate on gas fuel, vessels require some
additional fixtures to enable storage of gas,
and for the onboard processes.
Wärtsilä is today able to take responsibility
for the complete fuel storage, process,
distribution and use onboard, providing a
single-interface partnership to ship owners,
ship operators and shipyards.
WÄRTSILÄ LNGPac
The Wärtsilä LNGPac is a modularised,
complete system for onboard gas fuel
storage and handling. It includes the
pressurised storage tanks, cryogenic
valves and connections, evaporators, LNG
insulated piping, automation & controls,
and gas detection devices. These are all
located in one tank room welded on the
LNG tank to gain space and limit the safety
area around the LNGPac. The design
philosophy is focused on safety, together
with minimising the space and weight
impact. The equipment is optimised for
integrated operations with Wärtsilä DF
engines, and is based upon Wärtsilä’s
long-term experience as a world-renowned
automation supplier.
After the LNG has been re-gasified by
means of a heat exchanger, it is transferred
through a gas valve unit (GVU) in charge
of regulating the gas pressure towards the
Wärtsilä DF engines. The new GVU-ED® in
its stainless option can be integrated in the
tank room of the Wärtsilä LNGPac where
the LNG is processed. This brings unique
Wärtsilä integration benefits to the yard for
small vessels where the DF engine is close
to the Wärtsilä LNGPac system.
Finally, the gas is burnt into the engines.
Wärtsilä DF engines are four-stroke
medium speed engines able to operate on
both gas and liquid fuels as the main source
of energy.
When the Wärtsilä DF engine is operating
on gas, it can be considered to be operating
according to cycle, with the related positive
effects on efficiency levels and emissions
reductions. Alternatively, when a DF engine is
utilising liquid fuel as its source of energy, it
works as a conventional diesel engine. Wärtsilä
offers an extended DF product portfolio,
covering both main and auxiliary power
production necessities. The available engine
models featuring this technology are:
• Wärtsilä 20DF
• Wärtsilä 34DF
• Wärtsilä 50DF
All DF engine models are available both
for electrical and mechanical propulsion
applications.

6

Stern thruster
1.5 MW
Complete system integration – example configuration for RoPax ferry with diesel-electric propulsion.
WÄRTSILÄ LNGPac SYSTEM REFERENCE
Since 2000, Wärtsilä has powered 70 LNG
vessels that are on order or already in
operation. At the end of 2012, Wärtsilä had
performed 14 LNGPac installations, the oldest
one having a track record of over a year,
clearly showing the advantages of this clean
propulsion type.
Wärtsilä is a complete system integrator
of the entire ship design, down to the LNG
system. The DF engines and propellers offered
by Wärtsilä have been optimised and tailored
for the purpose of improving the customers’
operations.
The ship types specified with an LNGPac
system are very diverse: product tankers,
cruise vessels, offshore vessels, roll and
roll off, feeder container vessels, LPG and
ethylene carriers and, obviously, ferries like
Viking Grace. This is the largest passenger
2 x Wärtsilä 8L50DF
dual-fuel engines
Gas valve unit
in enclosure
Bunkering station
vessel in the world today equipped with two
200 m3 Wärtsilä LNGPacs, including a Wärtsilä
patented system utilising the latent heat from
the LNG evaporation process for the vessel
HVAC system (air conditioning). This system
provides significant energy savings for the
whole ship by increasing its total efficiency.
Although it is not included in the EEDI (the
Energy Efficiency Design Index), i.e. running
cost savings for the operator.
RELIABLE SYSTEM INTEGRATION
BY WÄRTSILÄ
With more than 20 years of experience, and
with more than 1000 gas engines sold and
in constant operation, Wärtsilä is today the
marine sector’s market leader in natural-gas-
based power production. Wärtsilä’s extended
product portfolio, which is particularly strong
on gas applications, is supported by deep
Compact silencer system
Bow thrusters
2 x 2.3 MW
2 x Wärtsilä 8L50DF
dual-fuel engines
know-how, competence, and design capability.
Together, these attributes make Wärtsilä the
ideal systems integrator whenever propulsion
related equipment needs to be optimised – be
it the bunkering flange or the propeller, for ship
design or automation systems.
Wärtsilä’s range today covers natural gas
storage, processing and distribution onboard,
LNG use in DF engines (both main and auxiliary
engines), power distribution, propulsion
equipment, and control & automation systems.
All parts are integrated into a complete system
designed and produced by Wärtsilä for each
application!
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Wärtsilä is a global leader in complete lifecycle power solutions for the
marine and energy markets. By emphasising technological innovation
and total efficiency, Wärtsilä maximises the environmental and economic
performance of the vessels and power plants of its customers.

SP-EN-DBAC120066 / 04.2013 / Bock´s Office / Litoset

In 2012, Wärtsilä’s net sales totalled EUR 4.7 billion with approximately
18,900 employees. The company has operations in nearly 170 locations
in 70 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is listed on the NASDAQ OMX
Helsinki, Finland.

WÄRTSILÄ® is a registered trademark. Copyright © 2013 Wärtsilä Corporation.

Wärtsilä powers the Viking Grace,

the largest passenger ferry using LNG.