NYK confirms order for WinGD VCR technology on DF coal carriers

The VCR system will be installed on two large LNG-fuelled coal carriers to be built at Oshima Shipbuilding. The vessels are scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2025. NYK claims that the order will be the first time that a VCR system has been installed on vessels.

As Marcel Ott explained to The Motorship at Nor-Shipping, the VCR solution represents an elegant solution to the challenge of designing dual-fuel engines to avoid potentially damaging peak pressures. As a result, dual-fuel engines are optimised for operation in gas mode, resulting in lower engine efficiencies in diesel mode operating on conventional. By introducing the ability to dynamically modify compression ratios, VCR will optimise fuel consumption in diesel mode and will also contribute to favourable efficiency in part-load gas operation.

This optimal adjustment will improve fuel efficiency during operation by about 3% in LNG gas mode and about 6% in diesel oil mode, NYK claims.

WinGD announced that it was adding the solution as a selectable option for WinGD’s X62DF-2.1 VCR, X62DF-S2.0 VCR, and X72DF-2.1/2.2 VCR engine types in June. At the time, Ott noted that the first orders for 62-bore engines equipped with the solution had been placed for a bulk carrier and a pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) project.