DECEMBER 22, 2015—Crane and deck machinery specialist Rapp Marine will supply advanced equipment packages for two new oceanographic research vessels that are being built for Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey (GMGS) and the
The icebreaking supply vessels are being built for Sovcomflot, Russia’s largest shipping company.
Last week’s keel laying saw the 221 first block of the first ship placed in the building dock as the starting point of the hull assembly.
The vessel will be capable of breaking through ice as thick as 1.5 meters and will be outfitted for emergency evacuation, rescue and fire fighting operations, oil spill response and platform support activities.
Once delivered, the vessel will serve in the Sakhalin-2 region energy production sites by transporting supplies and people between land bases and production platforms and protecting the production platforms from the impact of ice in the Sea of Okhotsk.
Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. (SEIC) operates the oil and gas field.
“Arctech has successfully built many similar kind of vessels for use in the rough weather conditions of the Sakhalin area. The series of vessels currently being built and designed at Arctech will further secure the energy production in the area,” says Esko Mustamäki, Managing Director of Arctech Helsinki Shipyard.
Measuring 100 m x 21.7 m, the vessel will be delivered to the client in the summer of 2016.
It vessel will be equipped with advanced Nordic environmental technology, such as a catalytic converter exhaust system and solutions for limiting underwater noise levels.
As well as increasing capacity for oil spill response, as well as emergency evacuation, in the the Sakhalin area, the vessel will be able to safely transport deck cargo, loose cargo, and liquid cargo in the integrated tanks below deck, and to carry production platform crew members as passengers regardless of weather and ice conditions.
The vessel has accommodations for 70 people – 28 crew members and 42 specialized staff members.
Baltic Icebreaker
The Baltic icebreaker Murmansk was delivered to Russia’s Vyborg Shipyard JSC, which will deliver it to customerRosmorport by year’s end.
The 119.8 m x 27.5 Murmansk is the second in a series of three vessels that the Russian Ministry of Transport ordered in 2012 from Vyborg Shipyard.
The basic design of the vessel and purchasing of major components was handled by Vyborg Shipyard. Arctech was responsible for the construction, outfitting and testing of the powerful vessel.
The main tasks of the vessel are icebreaking and assisting of heavy-tonnage vessels in ice, towing of vessels and other floating structures year-round in ice and open water.
The vessel will also be used for fire fighting on floating objects and other facilities, assisting vessels in distress in ice and open water and also for cargo transportation. The vessel is able to operate in temperatures as cold as -40°С and the maximum icebreaking capability is 1.5 m.
Designed by Aker Arctic, the icebreaker will support LNG carriers’ operability in the approach channel to the Sabetta harbor and in the terminal at Sabetta. With a length of 89.5 m, draft of 6.5 m and 12 MW propulsion power, it has been designed to proceed at a speed of two knots in level ice 1.5 m thick and at four knots in 5 m thick brash ice in limited water depth.
ABB will provide the power, automation and turbocharging capabilities for the vessel, which will maximize fuel efficiency and maneuverability by including four Azipod thrusters, adapted for the tough ice conditions and ABB’s DC Grid system, to distribute energy effectively. The main engine will also be fitted with a Power2 800-M advanced two-stage turbocharging system, enabling the highest efficiency turbocharging performance.
Peter Terweisch, ABB Group Senior Vice President, Process Automation says, “ABB’s marine applications are at the forefront of the icebreaking market with our process automation technology now central to the world’s most advanced icebreaking vessel. We are very pleased to be able to deliver industry leading levels of efficiency and safety by providing so many ABB latest generation solutions on one vessel.”
The vessel’s ABB Onboard DC Grid systemhas many advantages. It provides space and weight savings whilst minimizing noise and vibration. A key advantages is that it allows diesel engines to run at variable speeds, rather than one fixed speed, is important when managing ice conditions. This flexibility can also cut fuel use and emissions.
Two pairs of Azipod thrusters will be fitted on the bow and stern of the ship, all of which will be adapted to the conditions. They will be equipped with powerful electric motors (3 MW each). Turning 360 degrees, they will allow the ship’s crew to maneuver the vessel to operate stern or bow first.
Aker Arctic’s Mika Hovilainen says “The harbor icebreaker is a totally new concept especially developed for heavy harbor ice conditions with extensive thick brash ice. Having four Azipod units helps to take operability, maneuverability and ice management capability to one step further. Along with ABB Marine and Ports, we continue to be at the cutting edge of icebreaking technology.”
The icebreaker’s ABB Integrated Power and Energy Management System and Marine Automation System bring together main elements of the ship’s performance, such as power generation and propulsion, into a centralized system allowing the operator to increase efficiency and safety.
The Power2 800-M two-stage turbocharging system on the icebreaker’s Wärtsilä 31 engine, will further enhance fuel efficiency and flexibility of operations. With a low pressure and high pressure stage, it provides higher air pressure ratios, up to 12 from 8 in the previous generation. Compared to a single-stage turbocharger operating at 65-70% efficiency, Power2 800-M goes beyond 75% efficiency, the only system currently available across the large engine industry with this capability.
The turbocharging system responds to the need for new marine engine technology to offer consistency of performance across conventional and newer marine fuel options. This application will demonstrate the advances in efficiency and power density now available for four-stroke engines operating across a wide range of load profiles and facing added demands of emissions legislation.
The letter was also signed by Senators Tammy Baldwin (WI), Amy Klobuchar (MN), Al Franken (MN), Bob Casey (PA), Joe Donnelly (IN) and Sherrod Brown (OH).
Heavy ice cover seen in recent winters has seriously impaired commercial shipping and economic activity in the Great Lakes. Last winter, cargo shipping decreased by 3.2 million tons, costing $355 million in lost revenue and nearly 2,000 jobs.
“Heavy ice cover disrupts shipping and commerce on the Great Lakes, resulting in a severe loss of economic activity, revenue and jobs that depresses both the regional and national economy,” wrote the Senators in the letter. “It is essential that Congress provides the men and women of the Coast Guard with the resources they need to keep open shipping lanes in the Great Lakes and to conduct search and rescue missions to keep ships and their crews safe during winter’s cruelest months.”
The U.S. Coast Guard currently operates nine icebreaking-capable cutters on the Great Lakes, some of which date back to the 1970s.
With only one heavy icebreaker in the Great Lakes fleet, the USCGC Mackinaw (WLBB-30), the Coast Guard has struggled to combat near record-breaking ice cover on the Great Lakes in recent winters. As a member of the Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard, Peters is focused on ensuring the Coast Guard has the resources it needs to maintain shipping lanes and conduct its law enforcement, port security, safety duties, and other vital services. He also called for the inclusion of a heavy icebreaker in the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015.
Senator Stabenow is Co-Chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force, which is a bipartisan working group that advocates for the protection of the Great Lakes. Earlier this year, Senator Stabenow called for Congress to support a new Great Lakes icebreaker.
The full text of the letter is as follows:
The Honorable John Hoeven
Chairman
Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Subcommittee on Homeland Security
135 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Jeanne Shaheen
Ranking Member
Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Subcommittee on Homeland Security
125 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairman Hoeven and Ranking Member Shaheen:
As your Committee develops appropriations legislation for fiscal year 2016 (FY 2016), we urge you to provide the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard (USCG) with robust funding for the design and construction of a new heavy icebreaker for the Great Lakes region.
The USCG currently operates an aging fleet on the Great Lakes that includes only nine icebreaking-capable cutters, some of which date back to the 1970s. In 2006 the USCG added a heavy icebreaker called the USCG MACKINAW, but despite its addition, the USCG continues to struggle to combat the near record-breaking levels of ice coverage that have plagued the region in recent winters. Heavy ice cover disrupts shipping and commerce on the Great Lakes, resulting in a severe loss of economic activity, revenue and jobs that depresses both the regional and national economy.
During the 2013/2014 winter, U.S. flag cargo movements on the Great Lakes dropped by nearly 7 million tons, causing at least two steelmakers to reduce production, several power plants to nearly exhaust their supply of coal, and a total estimated cost of nearly 4,000 jobs and $700 million in lost business revenue. This past winter resulted in an estimated decrease in cargo of 3.2 million tons, costing the economy $355 million in lost revenue and nearly 2,000 jobs.
During this Congress, the importance of Great Lakes icebreaking has received bipartisan and bicameral recognition, including by your Committee, which, in its report to accompany the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act for FY 2016, expresses concern, “that the Coast Guard does not possess adequate capacity to meet its statutorily required mission on the Great Lakes, with negative consequences to the regional and national economy as well as to the safety of local communities[1].”
We share your concern and appreciate the report’s requirement for an updated mission analysis. Furthermore, on May 18, 2015, the House unanimously passed by voice vote H.R. 1987, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, which authorizes funding in FY 2016 and FY 2017 for the design and construction of a new USCG icebreaker for the Great Lakes. As the leaders of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure work toward a final bill, we support the retention of the House-passed authorizing language.
It is essential that Congress provides the men and women of the Coast Guard with the resources they need to keep open shipping lanes in the Great Lakes and to conduct search and rescue missions to keep ships and their crews safe during winter’s cruelest months. We look forward to working with you on this important matter.
The ship has been ordered from French shipbuilder Chantiers Piriou, based on a concept design issued by Marine Assistance (France) and is scheduled to be delivered in the first half of 2017.
The 72 m polar logistics and patrol icebreaker vessel will carry out its first supply mission to the Dumont d’Urville station in Antarctica in winter 2018.
The ship will have accommodations for 60 persons, a cargo capacity of 1200 metric tons, and will be fitted with a helideck large enough to accommodate two helicopters.
Wärtsilä’s experience and strong track record in providing solutions for icebreakers and arctic research and support vessels were prime considerations in the award of the propulsion contract.
The full scope of supply comprises four in-line Wärtsilä 20 main engines, two Wärtsilä stainless steel CPP propellers and shaft lines, two Wärtsilä reduction gears, four Wärtsilä NOR (NOx reduction) emissions after treatment systems that will enable the ship to comply with IMO Tier III emission regulations, and one Wärtsilä tunnel thruster.
The stainless steel propellers conform to the Bureau Veritas (BV) icebreaker 5 ice class rules.
“For this type of vessel that will be operating in the most challenging ice and weather conditions, reliability and efficient performance are essential. Wärtsilä has a strong reference list indicating our ability to fulfil these requirements and we are extremely pleased to be cooperating with Chantiers Piriou in this project,” says Aaron Bresnahan, Vice President Wärtsilä Marine Solutions.
The Wärtsilä equipment is planned for delivery in mid-2016.
Computer–generated images and video of the new ship were showcased October 29 at an event attended by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull MP, at the AAD’s headquarters in Kingston, Tasmania.
The icebreaker, designed by Danish naval architect firm, Knud E. Hansen, will be built by DMS Maritime’s subcontractor Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding at Damen’s Galati, Romania, shipyard with commissioning expected in October 2019. DMS Maritime would then operate and maintain the vessel in support of the Australian Antarctic program on a long-term basis.
Replacing the Aurora Australis, which has been in service since 1989, the new icebreaker will be faster, larger, stronger and offer increased endurance.
According to a fact sheet released by the Australian Antarctic Division, the new icebreaker will have an icebreaking capability of 1.65 meters at 3 knots compared to the existing vessel’s 1.23 meters at 2.5 knots.
The vessel will supply Antarctic research stations with cargo, equipment and personnel, and will serve as a research ship with extensive laboratory facilities on board and a multi-beam bathymetric echo sounder to enable seafloor mapping,
The vessel is expected to accommodate 34 DMS Maritime crew and up to 116 AAD scientific personnel, and has the ability to embark up to four helicopters, two landing craft and a dedicated science tender. Its physical specification is expected to be 156 m in length and 23,400 tonnes displacement.
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015 — Within days of President Barack Obama announcing plans to accelerate and expand the U.S. Coast Guard’s polar icebreaker acquisition program, the U.S. made its point about being an
SEPTEMBER 8, 2015 — The United States Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinaw (WLBB-30) recently completed repairs at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, Sturgeon Bay, WI, to prepare for winter operations on the Great Lakes. Winter
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