Events

A touch of SES know-how for offshore Angola

The three new surface effect ships (SES) recently delivered by Strategic Marine to Angola’s Energy Craft fleet are remarkable in more ways than one: sea trials demonstrated a top speed of 53knots but at a similar nautical-mile fuel consumption as far slower boats, writes Stevie Knight. The Crewliner 35 also delivers personnel without making them feel as if they’ve been travelling by cocktail shaker. However, the design’s inception was actually sparked by two dramatic crashes.

First, in 2014, came the sudden decline of the global oil and gas market. This meant day rates dropped like a stone for most vessels, says Eduard Ercegovic, technical director and co-founder of Aircat Vessels – who was then managing a fleet of chartered vessels for an offshore support company. The second was the 2016 Super Puma helicopter disaster in Norway, which claimed the lives of all 13 on board. This was followed by a sudden fall in helicopter availability.

Further, in the background was the ageing state of the long-range, 60-90-pax fast crew vessel (FCV) fleet – the vessel types that Ercegovic often chartered. The speed asked of FCVs means they can’t run forever, he explains: “They just get exhausted.” That left a niche in the market: what was needed was a more cost-effective alternative to helicopter transport and a more efficient, faster boat than a standard FCV.

So, Ercegovic and his colleague, Aircat Vessels managing director Jérôme Arnold, partnered with Norwegian naval architecture firm and SES specialist ESNA to create the Aircat 35 Crewliner. These vessels are basically a cross between a hovercraft and a catamaran; they generate an air cushion between the hulls to reduce resistance by lifting up to 80% of the boat’s weight out of the water. The effect is to reduce the vessel’s draught from 2.4m to a mere 0.8m.

This is achieved by a pair of large, 478kW fans, integrated into the forward half of the hulls. “These are not really custom-made – they’re actually the same blowers that you use for factory ventilation,” Ercegovic reveals. The dual fans push the air into the cushion that’s captured between two skirts; one fore, one aft of the boat’s high tunnel – but these have quite different characteristics. The forward skirt matches the bow angle and is made up of seven vertical, finger-like folds all nestled together, rather than a single sheet. If one of these fingers gets damaged, it will naturally deflate – but its sisters will automatically crowd in to take up the space, providing redundancy.

The rear skirt is very different and better described as a tiered structure of horizontal bags, maintained at just a little more pressure than the main cushion. These stern lobes, with the help of two vents, passively adapt to the waves by forming and reforming around the waves, to reduce pitching and a certain amount of roll – although that’s also minimised by the vessel’s 13.9m beam.

However, the main cushion is more actively modulated by four damper cassettes (vents) controlled by a computerised SES management system, which gathers data from multiple pressure sensors in the tunnel and from a motion reference unit (MRU). Since the electric actuators that open and close the dampers allow instant adjustment, the result is high-speed ride control.

“You can change the setting to maximise the lift and minimise the draught when you are going full speed in relatively calm seas,” says Ercegovic, adding that this leaves just enough draught for the propulsion and cooling to be effective. It’s also possible to dial it down since different, preset modes allow the crew to choose a ‘ride control sensitivity’. “There is some penalty to the speed if you increase the comfort, but it’s usually just a few knots,” Ercegovic says.

Canada gears up for River-class destroyers

Canada’s minister of national defence Bill Blair has announced the award of an implementation contract to Irving Shipbuilding for construction of a new class of destroyers, to be known as the River class. The River-class destroyers will replace the Royal Canadian Navy’s now-retired Iroquois-class destroyers and 12 Halifax-class frigates with a single ship that can handle multiple threats. At present, 15 examples of the vessels are expected to be built.

The design is based on BAE Systems’ Type 26 warship, which is being built by the UK for the Royal Navy, a variant of which is also being built for Australia as the Hunter-class frigate. The first three Canadian ships will be named Fraser, Saint-Laurent and Mackenzie.

The new vessels will have a length overall of 151.4m, a beam of 20.75m and a speed of 27knots. They will displace 7,800tonnes, have a maximum navigational draught of 8m and a range of 7,000nm. With accommodation for 210 personnel, they will have the capability to embark a CH-148 Cyclone helicopter, plus space for embarking remotely piloted systems.

The new destroyers will use a variant of the Aegis combat system with Cooperative Engagement Capability, and will be equipped with lightweight torpedoes, the Rolling Airframe Missile air defence system, two stabilised rapid-fire 30mm naval gun systems and surface-to-surface anti-ship missiles. Their primary air defence system will take the form of vertical launch systems for the Raytheon Standard Missile 2 and Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles. They will have reconfigurable mission and boat bays and a combined diesel-electric or gas (CODLOG) propulsion system based on a Rolls-Royce MT30 gas turbine, four Rolls-Royce MTU diesel generators and GE electric motors.

The initial implementation contract is for an agreed contract period of six years, with a contract extension to follow as the successful construction progresses.

The Government of Canada has established the cost to build and deliver the first three ships at C$22.2 billion (US$15.4 billion). This estimate includes the costs that will be paid to Irving Shipbuilding through the implementation contract, as well as costs associated with the delivery of the equipment, systems and ammunition that Canada will acquire to bring the first three ships into service. It is estimated that the implementation contract will contribute C$719.3 million annually to Canada’s GDP and create or maintain 5,250 jobs annually between 2025-2039.

“By investing in our own industry, Canadian workers are helping to build the fleet of the future, equipping the Navy and our members in uniform modern and versatile ships they need for Canada’s important contributions to peace and security at home, and abroad,” said Blair.

To help bring the River-class vessels into service and support them throughout their lifecycle, the Department of National Defence (DND) is building a land-based testing facility on a portion of DND-owned land in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Construction is expected to begin this summer, with completion expected in 2027.

UK and Japan unite to fine-tune floating offshore wind future

The Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, UK and the Japanese Floating Wind Technology Research Association (FLOWRA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work towards reducing risks and costs related to floating offshore wind.

The MoU, signed in Tokyo on 7 March, follows nine months of collaboration between ORE Catapult and FLOWRA. The initiative will cover areas such as personnel exchange, standardisation of component technologies and the creation of a “test and demonstration alliance” to develop technology on a large scale, ORE Catapult says. The MoU coincides with a wider recent co-operation between the UK and Japanese governments with regard to the development of these turbine types.

Jonathan Reynolds MP, UK secretary of state for business and trade, comments: “This partnership with Japan will turbocharge the development of this vital renewable energy. International partnerships like this will attract investment and deliver long-term, stable growth that supports skilled jobs and raises living standards across the UK, making our ‘Plan for Change’ a reality.”

The UK government’s Plan for Change aims to “make Britain a clean energy superpower” while kickstarting new economic opportunities for domestic businesses. The ORE Catapult-FLOWRA MoU will ultimately combine “UK R&D capability” and “Japanese industrial manufacturing capacity” for a surge in floating offshore wind technology development, ORE Catapult adds.

As well as providing economic benefits for each country, a robust offshore floating wind capability will bolster energy security for the UK and Japan, while assisting both to pursue their decarbonisation goals, adds Dr Cristina Garcia-Duffy, director of research and technical capabilities at ORE Catapult. For example, the Japanese government has set ambitious targets of 10GW of offshore capacity by 2030, increasing to 45GW by 2040. Floating wind turbines are expected to play a significant role here, due to Japan’s limited availability of shallow-water sites for fixed-bottom turbines.
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Additionally, the UK government’s British Energy Security Strategy, rolled out in 2022 in response to gas supply disruption in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, aims to generate 60GW of electricity from offshore wind sources by 2030, an estimated 5GW of which would be supplied by floating offshore wind turbines.

All-electric overhaul for car ferry 'MF Hamlet'

Norway-based Kongsberg Maritime has secured a leading role in a project to convert the double-ended car ferry MF Hamlet to battery-powered operation. The conversion of the 111.2m ferry, which is operated by Öresundslinjen on the route between Helsingør, Denmark, and Helsingborg, Sweden, will include the installation of battery packs and new permanent magnet motors for the azimuth thrusters.

Kongsberg says: “The primary goals of the project include achieving zero emissions, enabling full electric operation with batteries and having mechanical propulsion redundancy. The ferry will utilise high-voltage charging in port, taking only eight to 12 minutes, with low-voltage charging via gensets as an alternative.”

Kongsberg will also rebuild the existing thrusters and convert them to electric operation, installing new permanent magnet motors for each of the four main azimuth thrusters, each rated 1,530kW. The company adds that it will “provide a comprehensive energy, automation and control package, which includes interface to the main switchboard, retrofitting the K-Chief 600 to the new K-Chief system with an energy management system, and implementing Mcon thruster control with control chairs on the two bridges”.

Energy storage systems will be supplied by Echandia directly to the owner, while the Oresund Drydocks shipyard will handle the mechanical aspects of the conversion. The installation company, SH Group, will produce and install new deck houses and handle the cabling and wiring work.

The conversion job is scheduled to start in November this year at Oresund Drydocks, but the vessel will visit the yard later this month for preparation work during a scheduled maintenance docking. 

IHC Dredging secures Indonesian order

IHC Dredging has been contracted to supply two Beaver 65-class cutter suction dredgers to PT. Dua Samudera Perkasa, a subsidiary of Indonesia’s Jhonlin Group.

PT. Dua Samudera Perkasa previously took delivery of a Beaver 65, Jhoni 59, in August 2024. That vessel is now working at the coal transport and biodiesel terminal at Batulicin, South Kalimantan, alongside the Beagle 4-class dredger Samson, which IHC delivered to Jhonlin Group in 2023.

The Beaver 65 design features a length overall of 58m, a 12.4m beam and a depth of 2.97m. The dredger type has an average draught of 1.9m (max 2.02m) and more than 2,800kW of installed power.

Like other vessels in the Beaver 65 class, the new duo will be equipped with 650mm-diameter suction/discharge pipes. However, while these dredger types typically have a maximum dredging depth of 18m, this has been extended to 25m max for the new pair.

IHC Dredging adds that each new dredger will be equipped with upgrades including: a fuel separation system; a “state-of-the-art” radioactive production measurement system; and a dredge track presentation system (DTPS) with an accuracy of up to 20mm, providing the dredge operator with a digital overview of the hopper, cutter, excavator, clamshell and bucket line dredges. The two newbuilds are scheduled for delivery in September this year.

Using AI to fast-track maritime nuclear licensing

Classification society Lloyd’s Register (LR) says it plans to use Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service as a tool to accelerate licensing processes for nuclear in maritime applications.

The idea is to use the Azure OpenAI platform to analyse historic nuclear licensing data, which should help licensing engineers to draft new permit documents far more quickly, LR anticipates. The platform will also enable engineers to search for “regulations, precedents and other valuable information buried in large regulatory datasets” in a comparatively timely manner, LR says.

Jeff Scott, LR deputy chief technology and innovation officer, comments: “Regulations shouldn’t be a roadblock to innovation—they should be a launchpad. By teaming up with Microsoft, we’re using AI to cut through the red tape and fast-track the future of nuclear in maritime. It’s an exciting step toward making clean energy a reality on the water.”

Mark Tipping, LR’s global offshore power-to-X director, adds: “We have a large data source from decades of regulatory applications, which these AI capabilities can interrogate swiftly to identify good practice and lessons learned. Together, we’re tackling one of the biggest challenges in deploying nuclear technology, which is navigating complex, slow and costly licensing processes.

“Collaborating with Microsoft provides us with an excellent opportunity to combine two very different areas of expertise: their AI capabilities; and our vast history and knowledge of maritime and nuclear safety.”

One claimed benefit of the Azure OpenAI Service is the ability for end users to ask direct questions instead of writing complex database queries. When used in conjunction with Microsoft’s Azure AISearch, users can search through vast repositories of historic data, including documents, PDFs and databases, using keyword and semantic search capabilities.

Meanwhile, the Japan Society of Naval Architects and Ocean Engineers has launched its Review Committee of Nuclear Energy Utilization in Maritime Industries. Set to run for two years, the Review Committee, headed by Taiga Mitsuyuki, associate professor at Yokohama National University, will analyse the various barriers to maritime nuclear (including technical challenges, public acceptance and financial viability) and how to overcome them, using domestic and international case studies for reference.

The domestic case studies will include input from persons involved in the development of the 130m, nuclear-powered Japanese vessel Mutsu, which was launched in 1969. Built by Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries (now IHI Corporation) and originally powered by a pressurised water reactor (PWR), Mutsu was subject to criticism, and particularly so from local fishermen, after a minor radiation leak during its first test run in 1974. The programme was shelved, and the PWR removed in 1995, with the vessel being repurposed as the oceanographic research ship Mirai.

The Review Committee says it will wrap up its work in November 2026.

Ship repair and retrofit trends boost Seatrium

Singapore shipyard group Seatrium has turned in an impressive set of results in its first full year of operations since its creation, following the merger of the Sembcorp Marine and Keppel O&M shipyard operations in April 2023. The company achieved an underlying net profit of S$200 million (US$148.3 million) in 2024, compared with a loss of $S28 million in 2023. Revenues surged 27% year-on-year to S$9.2 billion.

One of the driving forces behind the improved results was the performance of its ship repair division, which achieved a 7% increase in revenues to S$1.1 billion. The company worked on a total of 231 ship repair and refit projects during the year, compared with 291 in 2023, thereby achieving a significant increase in the average value of work per vessel.

Chris Ong, Seatrium CEO, says: “Marine decarbonisation and fleet rejuvenation continue to drive demand in this part of our business.” The company recently completed a contract to retrofit the first onboard carbon capture and storage system (CCSS) on board the 160m LPG tanker Clipper Eris for Solvang, as a result of which the vessel will be able to store up to 70% of its carbon emissions on board. Seatrium has recently secured a second CCSS retrofit contract for Mitsui OSK Lines.

Seatrium has also taken steps to strengthen its repeat customer base with regard to ship repair and retrofit work. Over the past year, the company has signed or renewed four favoured customer contracts (FCCs), taking the number of such agreements in place to two as of March 2025. Ong adds: “These FCC contracts are important as they provide us with revenue visibility and enable forward capacity planning.”

SPONSORED: FleetguardFIT™ Reduces Service Cost by 50% for Marine Customer

Oil and filter changes at 250 or even 500 hours, as recommended in manufacturers’ maintenance manuals, make for a demanding service schedule. However, the introduction of the Fleetguard filtration monitoring system, FleetguardFIT™, proved service intervals could safely be extended to 1500 hours for M/S Hendrika, a dry cargo vessel. This reduced engine maintenance costs by approximately half for ship owners, the de Boer family, based in the Netherlands. Prior to the FleetguardFIT installation, the de Boers serviced the engine oil and filters every 800 hours.

FleetguardFIT, which stands for Filtration Intelligence Technology, monitors filters and engine oil health in real time using smart sensing, state-of-the-art algorithms, cloud computing, and on-board diagnostics. Developed by Atmus Filtration Technologies, this system optimizes filter and oil life. Servicing only when needed saves time and money and avoids unnecessary downtime. In addition, the de Boers discovered that the increase in efficiency provided by FleetguardFIT reduced environmental impact which could help them win more business.

M/S Hendrika

Engine

M/S Hendrika is the first marine vessel in the Netherlands with FleetguardFIT. Installed on the 1,000 HP engine are two LED air filter restriction indicators, an oil quality sensor, and differential pressure sensors for the lubrication filter and the fuel water separator.

Following installation, the de Boers have been able to monitor oil and filters through the FleetguardFIT portal. The color-coded dashboard displays any actions required and the remaining useful life of all monitored consumables. For fleet owners, equipment status can be viewed per vessel, enabling them to track maintenance events and consumable performance over time. One notable aspect of the portal is its critical alert feature. M/S Hendrika avoided costly downtime thanks to a critical air filter alert from FleetguardFIT.

FleetguardFIT can also provide third parties, such as insurance companies, with proof that oil and filter changes have been carried out on time, critical alerts have been responded to promptly, and oil quality has always been correct during the engine’s operating hours.

Paul Louwe, senior technical support engineer for Atmus Filtration Technologies says, “The right filters on high horsepower engines can last two to even eight times longer than manufacturer’s recommendations. Furthermore, predictive maintenance based on real-world conditions can save thousands in unplanned downtime per vessel per year, which can be significant for a fleet owner.”

Although not part of a fleet of vessels, for M/S Hendrika, the benefits of the condition-based monitoring system are clear. As well as meeting the original goal of reducing maintenance costs by extending the life of the oil and filters, it has helped extend equipment life and maximize uptime, while lowering the environmental impact of the business.

FleetguardFIT is suitable for air, oil and fuel filters, and lube oil on diesel and natural gas engines and can be used on other types of non-classed inland-waterway vessels, such as passenger ships and carriers of other types of cargo.

For more information about FleetguardFIT, visit Fleetguard.com

Fleetguard, a brand of Atmus Filtration Technologies Inc., is a leading brand in advanced filtration solutions, offering a wide range of products such as fuel filters, lube filters, air filters, crankcase ventilation, hydraulic filters and coolants.

Alt-fuel adoption on the ascent, DNV notes

As something of a stellar year for ship production, 2024 saw a 38% year-on-year increase in orders for alternative-fuelled newbuilds, totalling 515 ships, according to data released by DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform.

The AFI data suggests that container ship orders led the charge, with 69% of these orders opting for alt-fuels, predominantly (67%) LNG. Container vessels and car carriers accounted for 62% of all green-fuel orders last year, indicating that the maritime sector is taking decarbonisation seriously. The data also shows that 166 new orders opted for methanol as a fuel, comprising 32% of the AFI order book. Of these methanol orders, 85 were placed in the container ship segment.

Ammonia-fuel vessel orders were also on the up, increasing from eight in 2023 to 27 last year. However, the AFI data underscores that LNG emerged as the industry’s alt-fuel of choice in 2024, accounting for 264 orders; a significant increase on the 130 orders recorded in 2023. The data also highlights that the number of LNG-fuelled ships in service increased to 641 by the end of 2024, with a record number of deliveries (169) of these vessel types recorded in this period. DNV anticipates the number of LNG-powered ships in operation to double by the end of the decade.

This growth has been accompanied by an expansion of LNG bunkering infrastructure, with the number of LNG bunker vessels increasing from 52 in 2023 to 64 last year. However, DNV notes, there is still a demand-supply gap, which is “expected to widen over the next five years, based on the orderbook”. The class society adds: “With the EU regulatory package ‘Fit for 55’ setting requirements on a large network of ports to have LNG bunkering infrastructure, it is expected that the availability of LNG in ports will increase.”

Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, CEO, maritime at DNV, comments: “While recent figures are promising, we must keep pushing forward. The technological transition is underway, but supply of alternative fuel is still low. As an industry, we need to work with fuel suppliers and other stakeholders to ensure that shipping has access to its share of alternative fuels. It is also important that the safety of seafarers is ensured as we make this transition. This will require investment in upskilling and training.”

DNV shortly followed up on its AFI findings with the publication of a white paper entitled Biofuels in Shipping, in which it assessed biofuels such as fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) and HVO. This paper concludes that both biofuels have significant potential for reducing GHG emissions, thereby aiding compliance with CII, EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime. However, the paper warns, widespread adoption of biofuels is limited by the availability of sustainable, affordable biomass and competition from other sectors.

In 2023, the paper notes, biofuels constituted just 0.3% of shipping’s total energy use. The paper highlights the need for shipowners to consider alt-fuels alongside biofuels, given that biofuel use in shipping mostly involves blending with traditional fuels. Going forward, it will also be important to develop technical and operational considerations for using biofuels as drop-in fuels, accounting for factors such as fuel quality, system compatibility and performance monitoring, the paper cautions.

Coincidentally, 2024 saw Singapore record a surge in alternative fuels adoption, with sales of alt-fuels surpassing 1.3 million tonnes for the first time. Figures released by the Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) reveal increases in bunkering sales for biofuels (up 68.5% to 883,000tonnes), LNG (up 318.9% to 464,000tonnes), methanol (2,000tonnes) and ammonia (9.74tonnes).

The MPA is proactively pushing decarbonisation in its waters. For example, under the terms of the Maritime Singapore Green Initiative (MSGI), the MPA has pledged to provide up to 100% port dues concession to any oceangoing vessel calling at the Port of Singapore that uses zero-emissions fuels and technology (including battery power), zero-carbon fuel or certain low-carbon-content fuels and biofuels, until 31 December 2027.

Green Marine dives deep with new subsea-focused investment

Orkney-based Green Marine is expanding its range of in-house subsea O&M services by investing an undisclosed but seven-figure sum into the creation of a Subsea Services Department, focused on underwater maintenance across UK offshore wind farms.

The new department, which will open in late spring, aims to meet growing demand in an O&M market projected to reach £270 million by 2030, Green Marine says. The department will introduce a range of services, including: general visual inspections; 3D surveys, incorporating real-time simultaneous localisation and mapping (SLAM) analysis; evaluations of the physical, biological and geological conditions of specific marine sites; and O&M monitoring, with a focus on subsea cables/pipelines and offshore structures.

Jason Schofield, Green Marine MD, says: “While this entails an initial seven-figure capital investment, the longer-term company strategy is to continue investing and expanding way into the future. We benefit from a strategic location in Orkney with the world’s second-largest installed offshore wind capacity on our doorstep.” He tells The Naval Architect that a new team will be employed to support the rollout of the department, adding at least three to four full-time jobs. “This will expand quickly as the department and equipment utilisation grow too,” Schofield says.

Green Marine recently received a cash injection from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, which will be used to purchase subsea technology like ROVs and sensors. For example, the company has invested in the VALOR ROV, supplied by Rovtech (which acquired the VALOR line from Seatronics in January). This 860mm-long ROV is rated for a depth of 300m and has a maximum payload capacity of 21kg. Green Marine also intends to shop for tech from companies such as Sonardyne, Norbit, Voyis, Tritech, Digital Edge Subsea and EIVA.

Elaborating on the Subsea Services Department’s purpose, Myles Metson, Green Marine operations and technology director, says: “Ultimately, this means we are not reliant on equipment availability or unknown personnel. We can ensure rapid mobilisation and reduced overheads during off periods. It also relieves a major headache for our clients when reliant on a multitude of equipment, operators and expertise to deliver complex services.”

Green Marine has previously been involved in projects across offshore wind farms including Dogger Bank, Moray East and Triton Knoll, among others. The company also provides crew transfer and dive support services.