Shell signs up 45 LNG carriers for fuel-saving Kongsberg software

Shell decision to install Kongsberg solution followed extensive trial on Gaslog LNG carrier

After a successful year long trial on the Gaslog LNG carrier Methane Julia Louise, Shell has signed a five-year contract for the installation of a Kongsberg hydrodynamic optimization program on 45 of its chartered-in LNG carriers.

Called JAWS (Just Add Water System), the Kongsberg program requires no additional instrumentation. It calculates the most advantageous operating conditions in real time based on algorithms developed from historic high-frequency vessel data.

The system continually issues recommendations for optimal trim and draft, helping crews to cut fuel consumption and GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions. JAWS provides live data that allows ship and fleet managers to monitor and report emissions savings.

In the Methane Julia Louise trial, the vessel’s shaft energy consumption was recorded for nine months prior to the JAWS installation, and then throughout the year-long trial with the JAWS software installed, which demonstrated that JAWS could provide a significant fuel saving for the vessel.

The 45 LNG carriers that Shell will now install with JAWS already utilize the Kongsberg Maritime K-IMS Information Management System application suite. This, is a web-based solution that gives both ship crews and shore teams continual access to crucial voyage and vessel data. The provision of JAWS as an application within the K-IMS suite makes it instantly available to all K-IMS users.

Over the course of the year-long testing phase, onboard and onshore monitoring confirmed that the JAWS software generated substantial average energy savings of 5% when its recommendations were followed. This benchmark data was contrasted with performance data gathered from the sister vessel Methane Becki Anne, which followed a similar trading pattern.

“JAWS has arrived at a pivotal time for shipping operations,” says Karrie Trauth, senior vice president of Shell Shipping and Maritime, “when digitalization is being recognized as a key enabler for an industry determined to cut costs, reduce emissions and enhance efficiency. It was encouraging to see JAWS referenced directly in the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2021 flagship report as a key technology for delivering on emission-reducing targets in the shipping sector.”

UPCOMING IMO MANDATES

The availability of JAWS via the K-IMS solution is timely in the light of the IMO’s imminent revision of its GHG reduction strategy.

In 2023, new strictures will apply to performance measurements including the SEEMP (Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan), which requires ship owners to monitor and continuously improve their vessels’ fuel efficiency under all operating circumstances; and the CII (Carbon Intensity Indicator), which requires cargo ships to keep their carbon emissions below a mandated level, measured in grams of CO2 per DWT, per nautical mile.