MANmagazine Turbo 1/2015

man magazine 1/2015
Gas
Giants
Worldwide sourcing and distribution of
LNG has grown into a major industry player
while seeking to balance the growing
global appetite for affordable energy with
environmental concerns.
Photos: all mauritius-images, courtesy of OAO Sovcomflot
The new LNG carrier “Veliky
Novgorod” features a dieselelectric,
dual-fuel propulsion
MAN Diesel & Turbo system.
Securing power: The sprawling
LNG storage facilities at the
Rotterdam port in the Netherlands.
Among the largest commercial
vessels cruising the
oceans today are liquid
n atural g as c arriers
(LNGCs) that are almost 300 meters long and
more than 45 meters wide. One of the most
common vessel sizes is capable of carrying
170,000 cubic meters of super-cooled LNG
from its country of sourcing to where it is
needed to generate electricity to light and heat
homes and power the wheels of industry. MAN
Diesel & Turbo is in the fortunate position to
offer ship owners either four-stroke dual fuel
engines for diesel-electric propulsion or twostroke
MEGI high-pressure gas injection for
conventional propulsion. Typically diesel electric
propulsion solutions are powered by two
8L51/60DF and two 9L51/60DF types with a
combined total output of 34 MW. And the
market is booming. In July 2014, SinoShip News
announced that China is planning to build 60
new LNGCs by 2020, at a total cost of $12 billion.
While this trend is partially driven by increased
gas production in the United States
through non-traditional methods, LNG is also
attractive due to its green credentials.
Natural gas burns far cleaner than other
fossil fuels do, producing 30% less carbon
dioxide than petroleum and 45% less than
coal, as well as significantly lower levels of
sulfur and nitrogen oxides. “Natural gas and
air are mixed before entering the combustion
26 27