Offshore support vessel (OSV) owners recognise the operational and financial benefits of investing in new ships with hybrid propulsion and energy storage systems. This technology has now been recognised by the wider industry as demonstrated by a milestone sector award.
For Rolls-Royce Marine and Corvus Energy have jointly won Offshore Support Journal’s Environmental Award, sponsored by BDO UK, for their joint efforts in developing a state-of-the-art battery energy storage system. This award also recognises that the technology has been accepted and ordered for a ground-breaking newbuilding programme in what is perceived as a tough market for this type of capital investment.
Technology from Rolls-Royce Marine and Corvus Energy has been requested for eight Rolls-Royce-designed, DNV GL-classed, newbuild platform supply vessels (PSVs) from COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry (Guangdong) shipyard. These PSVs will be operated by Seacor Marine Holdings for worldwide operations once delivered as part of the vessel owner's global hybridisation programme.
Rolls-Royce vice president for sales in ship design and systems Ronny Pal Kvalsvik said this was an international project with collaboration with multiple organisations. “With Seacor Marine we are working together to be successful in this project,” he said. “The first vessel was delivered from the shipyard and is now in Singapore.
Riviera Maritime Media’s OSJ environmental award recognises a project or product that has made, or will make, a significant contribution to reducing the OSV industry’s environmental footprint. In this case it covers the technology behind one of the boldest environmental OSV projects to date at a time when the market is oversupplied with PSVs.
The eight vessels will be outfitted with Rolls-Royce Marine and Corvus Energy battery containers. These were verified by DNV GL, which has issued product certificates for the complete containers certifying these structures have adequate fire insulation for installation on OSVs. DNV GL also certified components like batteries, chargers, transformers and electrical installations in the container.
These containerised battery systems have demonstrated through testing that they reduce emissions and improve reliability during dynamic positioning (DP) operations. These batteries minimise the risk of power blackout to DP systems, increasing the reliability of PSV positioning around offshore platforms and drilling rigs.
The battery systems will also lead to savings in fuel consumption and onboard maintenance, with electric power minimising noise and vibration because the generators are loaded more evenly.
Through testing, simulation and research, DNV GL has discovered that containerised batteries are a good value proposition for vessels operating over extended periods of low loads or transient duty cycles that swing from very low loads to high loads, similar to those of a PSV operating profile, especially during DP operations.
• Heerema Marine Contractors and Royal Boskalis were also nominated for the environmental award. Heerema for its commitment to LNG propulsion on the next generation DP3 semi-submersible crane vessel, Sleipnir; Royal Boskalis for using a biofuel blend on the project to install the export cable to the Borssele offshore windfarm.
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