Wärtsilä to power Brazil’s new polar vessel

Wärtsilä will supply the main power generation and propulsion machinery for Brazil’s new 103.16 meter polar vessel Almirante Saldanha [Image: Seatrium]

Wärtsilä is to supply the main power generation and power conversion system for a new 103.16 meter Antarctic support vessel being built for the Brazilian Navy. The order has been placed by Seatrium’s Brazilian shipyard Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz, which was awarded a $150 million EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contract for the P-6 ice class vessel in June 2022.

Brazil’s new polar vessel, Navio Polar (NPo) Almirante Saldanha will be operated by the Brazilian Navy and is of strategic importance for maintaining the Brazilian presence in the Antarctic continent and ensuring the continuity of the scientific research that has been carried out at Brazil’s Comandante Ferraz Antarctic Station.

The full Wärtsilä scope for the vessel includes three Wärtsilä 32 diesel generating sets, a diesel-electric power conversion system and two bow thruster drive systems, as well as the power management system. Wärtsilä says its low emission, energy efficient, solution will deliver optimum performance, combined with high redundancy and availability, thanks to long times between overhauls and low fuel consumption.

“With the company’s long-standing and extensive experience in marine technology, we trust Wärtsilä to deliver high quality and reliability in all their products and systems,” says Maicon Batista Pinto – project manager,Navio Polar, at Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz. “These specialized vessels require superior performance, and we are confident that the Wärtsilä solutions selected will meet this requirement.”

“We are very proud that Jurong has put their trust in Wärtsilä to be the supplier of this extensive solution for the antarctic support vessel,” says Simon Riddle, general manager naval sales at Wärtsilä. “Thanks to Wärtsilä’s advanced technologies, the overall Wärtsilä solution has been optimized to provide the best possible efficiency for the Brazilian Navy’s operations. This efficiency will also minimize emissions, which is in line with our core strategy of enhancing sustainability wherever possible,” says Simon Riddle, general manager naval sales, Wärtsilä.

The Wärtsilä equipment for Brazil’s new polar vessel is scheduled for delivery to the shipyard commencing in 2024 and the vessel is expected to be commissioned in 2025.