Whatever the demand may be, engine manufacturer MAN is about to complete the “world’s most powerful two-stroke methanol engine”.
MAN has now announced that the engine will be ready in June.
According to the information, it is a MAN B&W 12G95ME-C10.5-LGIM (Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) engine with an output of 82,440 kW at 80 rpm, which is currently being built by the Chinese licensee CSSC-MES Diesel (CMD).
It is the first of a total of 12 engines for 12 container ships with 24,000 TEU each, which are currently being built: seven at Nantong Cosco KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) for the ship owner Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) and five at Dalian Cosco KHI Ship Engineering (DACKS) for OOCL’s parent company Cosco. Each engine will also be equipped with the EGRTC (Exhaust Gas Recirculation Turbocharger Cut-Out) system developed by MAN Energy Solutions, “the largest two-stage EGR system ever used in a two-stroke engine”.
Bjarne Foldager, Head of Two-Stroke Business, at MAN Energy Solutions, said the company wants to develop engines “that can run on the very fuels that will compete for market dominance in the future”. The world’s most powerful methanol engine is a remarkable milestone. “By harnessing the potential of methanol, we are bringing the maritime industry closer to its net-zero target. We also expect methanol to play a significant role as the fuel of the future in all segments,” says Foldager.
In the shipping industry, engine development is being closely monitored, also in view of the fact that in the recent past, LNG propulsion systems have repeatedly been chosen for newbuilds, as the question of the availability of alternatives such as methanol has not yet been answered to a sufficient extent. Christian Ludwig, Head of Two-Stroke Sales and Promotion at MAN, emphasized: “As we move towards a multi-fuel future, interest in methanol has steadily increased. To date, we have over 230 new and retrofitted ME-LGIM engines that have run exclusively on methanol for over 600,000 hours. ME-LGIM technology, which has been on the market for 10 years, is a mature, proven technology and proof that MAN Energy Solutions can develop attractive technologies that enable a climate-neutral future for shipping.”
