Norwegian shipbuilder Havyard has signed a contract for the construction of a hybrid diesel-electric platform supply vessel (PSV) for Icelandic offshore shipping company Fafnir Offshore.
The vessel (pictured), based on the new Havyard 833 WE ICE design, will be designed by Havyard Design and Solutions in Fosnavaag and will be constructed at Havyard Ship Technology`s yard in Leirvik in Sogn, Norway.
The Havyard 833 WE ICE will be 89.7m-long, 19.6m-wide, and able to travel at 15 knots. It will have a 1000sq m deck space, 4250-tonne deadline weight and will be operated with a 25-man crew.
The contract is worth about NOK 350 million, with ship delivery due in July 2015. Fafnir also has an option for a sister vessel, with delivery in Q4 2015.
Havyard says the Havyard 833 WE ICE is designed to operate as efficiently as possible and with the least amount of influence from exposed waters, including arctic waters.
The hybrid battery powered diesel-electric propulsion system is similar to those used in hybrid cars, which produce energy as efficiently as possible while also having access to necessary power whenever it is needed.
“A typical PSV has large variations within its energy needs depending on the operation being carried out. Going from A to B demands a certain need for energy and a different need is created when it is operating by an oil rig,” says Havyard. “Weather and wind conditions, waves and currents, also play their part in the swift variations of energy requirements.”
“In traditional diesel-electric propulsion systems the diesel generators` load will vary according to the alternating energy needs,” says Havyard design manager Leine. “This means that diesel engines cannot constantly operate within a load area where these engines have the lowest possible fuel consumption.
“With hybrid battery power you can constantly operate diesel generators at an optimal level. When energy demands vary you can either charge or discharge batteries, depending on whether the energy demands are lower or higher than the capacity of diesel generators in operation. Response time in relation to variation in power demands is also a lot shorter, so there is a quicker transfer of power to the ship`s thrusters which ensures a more precise and secure positioning, for example in operations by an offshore rig.”
The hybrid system for the Havyard 833 WE ICE has been developed in close cooperation with Norwegian Electric Systems, which is 40% owned by Havyard.
Fafnir Offshore
On 4 April, the hull of Havyard`s newbuild 120, Fafnir`s first newbuild, arrived the Leirvik shipyard in Sogn, Norway. Steingrímur Erlingsson is the founder and CEO of Fafnir. Erlingsson has a background as a fishing boat owner and he has amongst other things operated a shipping company in Canada. After selling off his fishing interests he was looking for fresh investment prospects and focus turned to the offshore oil industry.
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