Wärtsilä to Power World’s First LNG-Powered Offshore Construction Vessel

Wärtsilä says it will supply the engines and other propulsion machinery for a new offshore construction vessel being built at the Cosco shipyard in China. The ship owner is Belgian operator Dredging International (DEME), and it will be the first vessel of its kind to be fueled by LNG. Wärtsilä will also provide its LNGPac fuel storage and supply system and propulsion systems.

“The decision to utilize clean burning LNG fuel represents our commitment to provide environmentally sustainable solutions for our operations,” says Jan Gabriel, Head of newbuilding and conversion department at DEME.

The nearly 700 foot long vessel Orion will be powered by four 9-cylinder Wärtsilä 46DF dual-fuel electric propulsion engines, and two 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF dual-fuel engines. The Wärtsilä equipment is scheduled for delivery to the yard in the latter part of 2017. The Orion is expected to be delivered to the owners in 2018 and will undertake operations involving the installation of offshore windfarms in locations around the world.