LNG-battery propulsion for Nordlaks wellboat

The 83m loa, 19m beam wellboat was designed by NSK Ship Design and will be built in Tersan Shipyard in Turkey. It will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology for handling fish and water quality and will have capacity to carry more than 600 tonnes of live salmon.

“Next-generation wellboats have a number of power-intensive processes on board, and the logistics and operating patterns of the wellboats make LNG and batteries suitable as power sources, said Thomas Myhre, sales manager, NSK Ship Design. “This propulsion system will reduce the operating and maintenance costs for the wellboats and provide a significant environmental gain.”

The deal continues a growing trend for LNG-battery propulsion in the offshore sector and NSK Ship Design reported that it had been considering LNG propulsion for wellboats since 2010. The use of battery technology is particularly beneficial in combination with LNG fuel, as batteries can compensate for the slower dynamic response that can be a feature gas-fuelled engines, as well as enabling engines to run at more constant load.

Nordlaks’ second wellboat is the latest in a line of offshore vessels to employ LNG engines and batteries. Last year Eidesvik substituted one LNG-burning engine for a battery system on its OSV Viking Princess. In the fishing sector, Norwegian company Liafjord has recently commissioned a LNG-battery powered pelagic trawler, also to be built in Turkey.

The vessels is expected to be delivered in February 2020.