MAN B&W to power Gotland fast ferry

MAN B&W Diesel has received an order to supply 4 x 20RK280 engines to Italian ship builder Fincantieri. The Italian company has secured a contract to build a 122 metre monohull fast ferry at its Riva Trigoso facility east of Genoa. The vessel has been ordered by the largest Swedish ferry operators Rederi AB Gotland and will go into service between the Swedish mainland and Gotland Island in the Baltic Sea.

The 20RK280 engines are the most powerful 1,000rpm diesels in the world, continuously rated with classification society type approval at 9000 kW at 1,000rpm. The order was won with the requirement for low fuel consumption, reliability and high power output without sacrificing accessibility for routine maintenance. The engines will be built in the UK at the Stockport plant of MAN B&W and are scheduled for delivery during March and April 2005.

The new fast ferry will have an approximate maximum speed of 40 knots and an operating speed of 36 knots, which will be achieved at 85% engine power. It will have a capacity for 800 passengers and over 160 cars. Each engine will drive a Rolls Royce Ka Me Wa S140 II waterjets through a ZF 6000 NRH gearbox.