MAN PrimeServ, the after-sales division of MAN Energy Solutions, has announced that it has been awarded the contract to convert two RoPax ferries from Spanish operator Baleària Eurolineas Maritimas to dual-fuel operation. The sister ships, the Nápoles and Sicilia, are currently each powered by MAN 9L48/60A main engines, which will all be converted to 9L51/60DF units that will enable running on LNG.
In a prepared statement, Dr Thomas Spindler, head of upgrades & retrofits, PrimeServ Four-Stroke, MAN Energy Solutions, said: “We showed – with the conversion of Wessels Reederei’s Wes Amelie containership – that operational MAN engines can successfully be converted to LNG operation with a positive effect on exhaust emissions and the environment.”
The conversion of the Nápoles is due to take place in Spain between November 2018 and January 2019, with the conversion of Sicilia to take place from October to December 2019.
According to MAN, the conversion to LNG operation is part of its wide-ranging engagement for the establishment of LNG as a shipping fuel. Calling for a “Maritime Energy Transition” MAN stated that it considers the use of natural gas as the fuel of choice in global shipping and the most promising way to support the goal of a climate-neutral shipping.
