Qingdao-based maritime technology firm Headway Technology Group (Headway) and Yuchai Marine Power Co., Ltd (YCMP) on Thursday (21 November) signed an agreement to collaborate on Headway’s OceanGuard® Ammonia Fuel Supply System (AFSS) project in Zhuhai City, China. 

The AFSS system will be used on YCMP's ammonia-fuelled low-speed engine test platform and will be delivered as a turnkey solution. YCMP develops, designs, produces, and sells low-speed high power marine diesel engines for bulk carriers, container vessels, tankers, and engineering ships. 

YCMP  holds production licences for WIN GD and MAN ES two-stroke engines and is based in Zhuhai, Guangdong.  

Headway's Vice President Cao Xuelei and YCMP's Chief Engineer Feng Deliang signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations. YCMP's General Manager Deng Hui, Headway's New Energy Project Manager Zhao Rui, and other key departmental representatives from both sides attended the ceremony. 

Headway will provide a comprehensive system including ammonia storage tanks, supply modules, unloading compressors, pumps, escaped ammonia catching systems, gas detectors, and double-walled pipelines. 

“Supporting both WinGD and MAN engines, this project highlights Headway’s advanced modular design and EPC capabilities. Headway will handle the entire lifecycle of the project, from engineering design, infrastructure construction, equipment manufacturing, installation and commissioning, to deliver a turnkey service,” the firm said. 

The OceanGuard® Ammonia Fuel Supply System is Headway's latest independently developed alternative fuel system, following LNG, LPG, and methanol supply systems. It features modular design, dual redundancy, and customised configurations based on vessel types. 

The system is efficient, reliable, and safe, and supports one-touch operation and fault self-diagnosis. Its unique pressure stabilisation design ensures stability under varying engine loads. The OceanGuard® Ammonia Fuel Supply System has received Approval in Principle (AIP) certifications from CCS, DNV, and RINA classification societies. Additionally, it has successfully integrated multiple key components with WinGD ammonia-fueled engines for onboard applications. 

Simultaneously, Headway successfully delivered another large-capacity Methanol Fuel Supply System module for Dalian Marine Diesel after delivery the first in 2023 and the module is compatible with 65,000 kW methanol dual-fuel low-speed engines. 

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Photo credit: Headway Technology Group
Published: 25 November, 2024 

Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) on Monday (18 November) said the conversion of container ship Maersk Halifax into a methanol dual-fuel vessel has been completed. 

The retrofit operation was conducted at the Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard in China over 88 days with completion at the end of October 2024.

“We are happy to announce that Maersk Halifax successfully has been retrofitted into a dual-fuel methanol vessel,” said Leonardo Sonzio, Head of Fleet Management and Technology at Maersk.

“Following the completion of the sea-trials, Maersk Halifax has returned to operation and is now servicing our customers on the Trans-Pacific trade.”

The engine conversion has been done by MAN Energy Solutions. Besides replacing machine parts and thereby making the engine able to operate on methanol, the retrofit operation at the yard has involved adding new fuel tanks, fuel preparation room and fuel supply system. 

The hull has also been expanded to accommodate the fuel tanks. With this change, the length of the ship was extended by 15 metres to 368 metres, increasing the capacity from around 15,000 to 15,690 TEU.

“Since we set the ambitious climate goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2040, we have explored the potential in retrofitting existing vessels with dual-fuel engines. In the coming year, we will take learnings from this first conversion of a large vessel,” said Sonzio.

“Retrofits of existing vessels can be an important alternative to newbuilds in our transition from fossil fuels to low-emission fuels.”

Maersk Halifax, which is one of 11 vessels in Maersk’s Hong Kong-class, departed anchorage at the yard on 4 November 2024.

Manifold Times previously reported Sinopec Zhejiang Zhoushan Petroleum successfully completed the largest single bunkering of methanol bunker fuel for ships in China. 

Sinopec conducted a truck-to-ship bunkering operation, delivering 937.68 metric tonnes (mt) of methanol bunker fuel to the large container vessel Maersk Halifax at Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard. 

Related: Sinopec successfully completes largest methanol bunkering operation in China

Photo credit: Maersk
Published: 19 November, 2024

MAN Energy Solutions (MAN ES) on Thursday (31 October) reported that it has received multiple orders for MAN B&W G95ME-LGIM Mk 10.5 methanol engines to power a series of Very Large Container Vessels (VLCVs).

The order brings the cumulative number of G95ME-C10.5-LGIM methanol engine orders to 95 at various yards in South Korea, China and Japan since the engine’s market introduction in 2021, of which five have already entered operation aboard VLCVs.

The new engines will share the same basic engine design concept as those 50-bore LGIM engines that have already been delivered, of which more than 25 are already in service. 

Peter Quaade, Head of Dual-Fuel Engine Group, Two-Stroke Engine Support, MAN Energy Solutions, said: “Interest in methanol is taking off for newbuildings and retrofits. Our dual-fuel methanol concept is proven and, to date, has accumulated over half a million hours running on methanol alone.”

“Simultaneously, the interest in methanol retrofits is also growing. Indeed, the world’s first methanol engine retrofit – a G95ME-LGIM type – is currently undergoing sea-trials in China, which we anticipate will increase interest in this approach to decarbonisation.”

Bjarne Foldager – Country Manager, Denmark – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “The marine industry is heading for a multi-fuel future where several pathways need to be available in order to achieve sufficient greenhouse-gas reduction at scale. Along with methane and ammonia, methanol is one of the low- and zero-carbon fuels that will underpin shipping’s quest for decarbonisation. We ultimately expect methanol to figure prominently as a future fuel across all vessel segments.”

Photo credit: MAN ES
Published: 4 November, 2024