WE Tech equips Donsötank’s newbuilds with ESS package

The 167.3m long 22,000dwt newbuildings are under construction at Wuhu Shipyard Co. Ltd. The dual-fuel chemical tankers will be equipped with a Wärtsilä 10V31 DF prime mover and two Wärtsilä 8L20 auxiliary engines. The vessels are due to be delivered in the middle of 2021.

The Energy Storage System will be integrated into the propulsion package delivered in 2020, including Propulsion Drives, Permanent Magnet Shaft Generator, Shore Connection Switchgear, Bow Thruster Motor and DC Link to two new 22000 DWT tankers for chemical and oil.

The vessels were originally designed as battery pack-ready, but a financial contribution from the the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency encouraged the shipowner to upgrade the vessel.

Peak shaving

The ESS can provide peak shaving functionality to ensure an efficient operation of the Auxiliary Generators while all large consumers are provided with a very fast load response and the electrical network is kept stable.

The battery banks can also act as a spinning reserve to provide an energy reserve for power generation, allowing for single generator operation i.e. limiting unnecessary parallel running of generators. This functionality is available when power is generated from the Shaft Generator or from Auxiliary Generators. In case a generator is unexpectedly shut down, the battery ensures a blackout prevention functionality to keep the electrical network alive until a stand-by Auxiliary Generator comes online.

Shore-power connection

While the chemical tanker is in the harbour, it can be connected to the shore electric power grid, which directly supplies vessel’s electrical system and the ESS re-charging. This eliminates the need to generate electricity by generators and therefore minimising the vessel’s environmental footprint. The WE Drive ensures the vessel’s power grid can be seamlessly matched to the harbour’s shore supply in terms of voltage and frequency.