Wärtsilä power for heavy-lift jobs

Wärtsilä diesel-electric propulsion plants of 11.5 MW have been ordered for two heavy-lift transport vessels to be converted for Fairmount Heavy Transport NV, an associated company of the Rotterdam-based towage contractor Fairmount Marine BV.

The “Fairmount Fjord” and “Fairmount Fjell” were originally semi-submersible barges and are being converted to self-propelled heavy-lift transport vessels. When the conversions are completed in the second half of 2006, the vessels will be primarily employed in the transport of offshore equipment such as jack-up and semi-submersible drilling rigs, and floating production units for the offshore oil and gas industry. With this type of vessel, the cargo is loaded and unloaded when the vessel is ballasted down to a semi-submerged condition. The cargo is then floated on and off the vessel’s large open cargo deck.

The “Fairmount Fjord” has dimensions of 164.3 m length bp, 45.5 m breadth and 9 m depth. The “Fairmount Fjell” has dimensions of 146.3 m length bp, 36.0 m breadth and 9 m depth.

For each vessel, Wärtsilä will deliver three diesel generating sets, two Lips steerable thrusters and a Lips bow thruster. The three 8-cyliner in-line Wärtsilä 32 diesel generating sets each have a maximum continuous power output of 3,840 kW at 720 rpm. The sets will supply electrical power to two 4,500 kW steerable thrusters having a fixed-pitch propeller of 3,400 mm diameter in a high-performance HR nozzle. The 1,500 kW bow thruster will have a 2250 m-diameter controllable-pitch propeller. The diesel-electric propulsion plants will give the vessels a service speed of 12 knots.