Havyard Bags Hybrid Battery-Powered Arctic PSV

Havyard Group AS and Fafnir Offshore have signed a $56.6 million contract for the construction of Havyard 833 WE ICE platform supply vessel.

The vessel, designed by Havyard Design and Solutions in Fosnavaag, will be constructed at Havyard Ship Technology`s yard in Leirvik in Sogn, Norway. The vessel will become newbuild number 126 and is slated for delivery in July 2015.

Havyard 833 WE ICE is a newly developed platform supply vessel (PSV) design based on the most recent technology within fuel economy and environmental friendliness. This PSV is designed to operate as efficiently as possible and with the least amount of influence from exposed waters.

The greatest innovation onboard the vessel is that it is equipped with a hybrid battery powered diesel-electric propulsion system.

“When we develop a new ship design we have two main focal points,” said Arve Helsem Leine, Design Manager of Havyard Design & Solutions. “Those are the customer’s demands in relation to the ship’s operational needs and area of operation and also to use the latest accessible technology and research tools in order to make the ship as efficient as possible. We have invested a lot in our design philosophy and in our calculation tools and methods for testing. We also work closely with key suppliers in developing good solutions for our designs and hybrid battery power is a good example of this.”

Efficient energy when needed

The idea of hybrid battery diesel-electric propulsion system is the same as for hybrid cars, namely to 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. 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,” said 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 this ship is developed in close cooperation with Norwegian Electric Systems and shows exactly how important cooperation within the value chain is, in order to bring forth the best products. This hull design combined with hybrid battery power ensure that a PSV in given operations uses 30 to 40% less fuel compared to a traditional PSV,” said the Design Manager.

This latest contract is the second Havyard has signed with the Icelandic offshore shipping company Fafnir Offshore. On April 4th the hull of Havyard`s newbuild 120, Fafnir’s first newbuild, arrived the Leirvik shipyard in Sogn, Norway.

“Havyard 833 WE ICE design, designed to operate in the Arctic region, with its hybrid battery power allows us to save even more on fuel expenses. Havyard really does live up to its vision ‘Improving life at sea’ and we have great faith in the future and our cooperation with Havyard. That’s why we have also secured an option for construction of a sister ship to be delivered during the fourth quarter of 2015 and we strongly believe we will take advantage of this option,” said Mr. Erlingsson CEO of Fafnir Offshore.

“Havyard Group is a ship technology group with focus on developing competitive products and systems, based on competence of and having control of the value chain,” says CEO Geir Johan Bakke of Havyard Group. “Our greatest asset is quality products and services adding value to the customer. Our business model with products in ship design, equipment and shipbuilding, provide us with flexibility when we offer exactly what the customer wants, whether the customer wishes to construct in Norway or internationally“.

Key data for Havyard 833 WE ICE PSV:

Length: 89.7 m

Breadth: 19.6 m

Speed: 15 knots

Deck area: 1000 m2

Crew: 25 persons

Dead weight: 4250 tonnes

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havyard, April 15, 2014