Wärtsilä to Provide Dual-Fuel Engines for LNG Bunkering Vessel

Wärtsilä has signed a LOI with ENN for the supply of Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel main engines for the 8000 m3 LNG bunkering vessel.

The Wärtsilä Corporation (Wärtsilä) Monday announced that it has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with ENN (Zhoushan) LNG Co (ENN) for the supply of Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel main engines for an 8000 m3 liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering vessel.

"This represents a landmark, first such project in China for international shipping purposes," said Wärtsilä, noting that the agreement provides the option for a second vessel as well.

The announcement came alongside news of a new Wärtsilä joint venture with the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), CSSC Wärtsilä Engine Co Ltd (CWEC), which saw the official launch of a new factory in Lingang, Shanghai.

"Being close to our customers in order to serve them better is central to Wärtsilä’s global strategy. We are, therefore, extremely pleased to officially open this modern production facility, the first in China capable of producing DF engines, which will serve China’s shipbuilding industry with high quality, technologically advanced Wärtsilä marine engines," said Jaakko Eskola, Wärtsilä’s President & CEO, at the opening ceremony Monday.

"It is an honour to be sharing this day with our joint venture partners, CSSC, one of China’s most modern industrial corporations. Together, we are supporting China’s shipping industry’s move into the age of LNG fuel."

Wärtsilä notes that it has also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with CWEC and the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group to work on, among other things, new build vessel project opportunities for engines and other marine equipment, jointly optimising vessel concepts to boost efficiency and environmental sustainability.