Wärtsilä will fit new DP2 construction vessel with hybrid system

cta Centaurus will be fitted with a Wärtsilä hybrid solution for fuel savings and better environmental performance. (Image copyright: Acta Marine)

Acta Centaurus, a 93.4 meter offshore wind construction support delivered earlier this year by Norway’s Ulstein Verft, is to be fitted with a Wärtsilä hybrid propulsion solution. The DP2 walk-to-work construction support vessel is owned by Netherlands-based Acta Marine and will gain fuel consumption and environmental benefits by being able to operate with fewer engines running and at a more optimized load. 

The Wärtsilä  solution includes the hybrid drive, the batteries, and an energy management system. Wärtsilä will also carry out the installation, testing and commissioning of the hybrid system, as well as upgrading the ship’s existing onboard systems to make it suitable for hybrid drive.

“Hybrid propulsion is becoming an increasingly adopted trend for meeting the challenges faced by today’s maritime industry. Wärtsilä has been a forerunner in developing the technology to make this both possible and feasible, and our track record in this field is already significant,” says Joel Knif, General Manager, Marine Project Sales, Wärtsilä Marine.

The installation of the equipment needed for the hybrid conversion will take place during the fourth quarter of this year.

Offshore wind construction vessels have a high dynamic positioning load and thus fluctuating power requirements. This makes them good candidates for hybrid solutions, which can yield a CO2 reduction of around 15%.