Wärtsilä Inks LNG Carrier Upkeep Deal with Tokyo LNG Tanker

Marine propulsion company Wärtsilä has signed a long-term agreement with LNG shipowner Tokyo LNG Tanker Co. Ltd for the maintenance of LNG carriers powered by Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines.

The deal between the Tokyo Gas subsidiary and Wärtsilä was signed in December 2018, and the order booked in January 2019.

The solution, dubbed Wärtsilä Optimised maintenance, is the first of its kind between Wärtsilä and a fully owned Japanese marine customer, the company said.

Built by Japan Marine United, the 165,000 cbm tankers are each powered by four 9-cylinder Wärtsilä 50DF and one 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 50DF engines.

As agreed, Wärtsilä will provide scheduled maintenance as well as dynamic maintenance planning inspections and spare parts. According to the company, the optimized, condition-based maintenance will enable predictive assessments of servicing needs based on actual component performance, rather than conventional time-based scheduling. This reliability in equipment performance is expected to eliminate the need for unexpected and unscheduled vessel repairs.

“Our agreement with Tokyo LNG Tanker is an important aid in ensuring their fleet availability and eliminating unexpected breakdowns. It will allow the customer to focus on their core business, and strengthen the reliability of their operations,” said John Sydney, vice president, Middle East & Asia, Wärtsilä Marine.