Finnish technology group Wärtsilä has installed a hybrid energy system on board Norwegian offshore supply vessel Viking Princess, making it the first ever OSV in which batteries reduce the number of generators aboard the ship.
The company informed that the new energy storage solution will improve engine efficiency, generate fuel savings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Viking Princess completed sea trials and the system was handed over to customer Eidesvik Offshore on October 9, 2017.
“There is significant potential to save fuel through improved engine efficiency, as the operating profile of supply vessels is highly variable,” Wärtsilä said, adding that the fuel saving potential aboard Viking Princess can be up to 30 percent in various operations and the CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 13-18 percent per year, depending on operational conditions and requirements.
Furthermore, the hybrid solution is expected to provide a more optimal load on the engines, while the intervals between engine maintenance can be extended.
Viking Princess now runs on a combination of a battery pack for energy storage and three LNG-fuelled Wärtsilä engines. The new energy storage solution provides balancing energy to cover the demand peaks, resulting in a more stable load on the engines.
The contract to replace one of the four engines on Viking Princess with battery power was signed in May.
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