Wärtsilä has signed technical management agreements with four Greek liquefied natural gas ship owners, Maran Gas Maritime, Dynagas, TMS Cardiff Gas and Thenamaris LNG covering condition based maintenance for a total of 80 Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines for a five year period.
The agreements have been signed between the third quarter of 2013 and the second quarter of 2014 and condition based maintenance system brings flexibility to operations as maintenance intervals are optimised. The system enables feeding engine parameters into Wärtsilä’s database, and the parameters are then evaluated by specialists at the condition based monitoring centre. Condition mased maintenance enables early detection of performance issues, reduced downtime, optimised engine performance, predictable cash flow, and optimization of major overhauls. Due to constant monitoring, maintenance is predictive and based on the actual condition of the engine, thus bringing a significant opportunity to reduce operating costs.
The agreements with TMS Cardiff Gas and Thenamaris LNG also include online remote support, which means that Wärtsilä’s technical experts can support the LNG carrier’s crew in real time via an online PC connection without the need for engineers to travel to the vessels.
“We expect that this agreement with Wärtsilä will lead to higher availability, increased efficiency, reduced maintenance cost, and reduced risk for the DF Engines installed on Maran Gas Fleet. Wärtsilä’s technology, global presence and local support are essential elements for supporting this agreement,” says Andreas Spertos, Technical Director, Maran Gas Maritime Inc .
“With these long-term agreements, we aim to improve our customers’ business during the entire lifecycle of their installations. By utilising the latest technologies in our Condition Based Maintenance system, our target is to repair or replace engine components when needed, thus reducing costs and minimising downtime caused by unnecessary overhaul,” says Veikko Lepistö, General Manager, Marine Agreements, Wärtsilä Services .
Agreements cover 80 Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines
Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engine allows for fuel flexibility since it is capable of running on either natural gas, light fuel oil (LFO), or heavy fuel oil (HFO), and can smoothly switch between fuels whilst operating. It is designed to provide the same output regardless of the fuel.
Maran Gas Maritime is the gas shipping unit of the Greek Angelicoussis Shipping Group. The Group has a well-established track record in shipping dating back to 1947. Its fleet comprises of bulk carriers, oil tankers and LNG carriers. The agreement with Wärtsilä covers technical management for twenty-four Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines in six LNG vessels.
Dynagas is a Greek LNG maritime transportation company established in 2004. The company offers in-house ship management services in order to provide charterers and stakeholders with the best performance and reliability. The agreement with Wärtsilä covers Technical Management for twenty-eight Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines in seven LNG vessels.
TMS Cardiff Gas, based in Greece, manages the LNG fleet of Cardiff Marine Inc. Cardiff has a history of more than 30 years of traditional ship-management services in almost all type of vessels coupled with engineering and offshore drilling management expertise and a highly experienced team of LNG professionals. The agreement with Wärtsilä covers Technical Management for sixteen Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines in four LNG vessels.
Thenamaris LNG Inc is a Greece-based company currently managing two 160,000 cbm LNG carriers, and one more LNG carrier project under construction. The company is part of the global ship manager Thenamaris. The agreement with Wärtsilä covers technical management for twelve Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines in three LNG vessels.
Press Release, July 15, 2014; Image: Wärtsilä