Methanol dual-fuel engines on their way to Jan De Nul’s XL cable layer

Anglo Belgian Corporation (ABC), a Ghent-based manufacturer of medium-speed engines, is ready to ship methanol dual-fuel engines for Jan De Nul’s first XL cable-laying vessel (CLV), set for delivery in 2026.

Jan De Nul announced in October 2023 that it had placed an order for the XL CLV Fleeming Jenkin at China’s CMHI Haimen shipyard, followed by an order for another identical one, named William Thomson, last May, which are expected to be the largest CLVs in the world.

As part of a contract secured at the beginning of 2024, ABC is in charge of delivering four 7,200 kW engines and one 1,800 kW engine that can run on (bio)diesel, HVO and methanol for Fleeming Jenkin.

The Belgian company now reported it had completed factory acceptance testing for all four 12DV36 DF MeOH engines, with the next step being shipping them.

Fleeming Jenkin will be the first Ultra-Low Emission vessel (ULEv EURO VI) to operate using these methanol dual-fuel engines, ABC said.

The two cable layers will be 215 meters long and will have three carousels and a cable-carrying capacity of 28,000 tons. They will be capable of laying cables in both shallow and ultra-deep waters up to 3,000 meters and handling cable tensions of up to 150 tons.

Fleeming Jenkin, which will be delivered in 2026, has already been booked for its first projects.