Spanish ferry operator Baleària announced construction of the world’s first fast passenger and cargo ferry powered by dual-LNG engines, being built in the Armon de Gijón shipyard. With a length of 125 meters and a beam of 28 meters, the new catamaran will have capacity for 1,200 passengers and 500 cars (or alternatively 500 linear meters of trucks and 250 cars), which also makes it currently ‘the longest and highest-capacity fast ferry catamaran’.
The announcement was made by Baleària president Adolfo Utor, at the inaugural conference of the 57th Congress of Naval Engineering and Maritime Industry, being held these days in Valencia.
The vessel will be powered by four dual Wartsilä LNG / GO engines of 8800 kW each, which will allow it to reach a service speed of 35 knots and a maximum speed of more than 40 knots. In addition, it will have two tanks to store LNG with a range of 400 nm.
Additionally, the bow of the vessel has been specially designed combining improvements in behavior derived from the vertical prows in the side hulls with the incorporation of wave piercing, to comply with stringent energy efficiency standards.
Baleària will invest 90 million euros in this ferry, with construction scheduled to begin next December and the vessel to enter into service in the summer of 2020.
The new vessel is part of the smart maritime concept by Baleària, consisting of the application of new technologies, big data and artificial intelligence, through the digitalization of ships and maritime stations at the service of energy efficiency and passenger services.
Baleària is also finalizing the construction of the first two smart ships with LNG engines that will sail in the Mediterranean. It is planned that the ‘Hypatia of Alexandria’ will start operating at the beginning of next year and the ‘Marie Curie’ a few months later.
In addition, this autumn the first of a total of six vessels in the fleet will be remotorized so that they can navigate powered by LNG. The EU has awarded Baleària a grant of 12 million euros, on a total investment of 72 million euros.
In the next three years, Baleària plans to have at least half of its fleet of ferries sailing with LNG, and reach 100% of the fleet within ten years.
