The French company has already developed shore power connections for RoPax ferries operated by the Norwegian Color Line. Now NG3 has launched “Flying Plug”, a solution for tankers.
Flying Plug makes it possible to connect tankers to shore power at the stern of the ship, away from the potentially dangerous cargo area and close to the main distribution board, according to the manufacturer. It is based on the proven “plug” connector technology for independent plugging and unplugging, which has been used on numerous RoPax vessels for over a decade, it adds.
NG3 solution works “contactless”
One of the main challenges is that the position of tankers during cargo operations is determined by the connection of the midship cargo manifold to the terminal. The stern position of the ship can change depending on the size of the ship and is away from the landside position. The flying plug solution is based on using one of the ship’s mooring lines to support a set of dollies that bring the connector and its power cables to the ship where the connection can be made.
The operation is “touchless” and requires only one crew member and one terminal operator. The connection/disconnection reportedly only takes a few minutes, without interfering with chartering operations.
On the ship side, the Flying Plug interface is compact and lightweight, while the shore side is a simple “bolt-on” solution to the existing mooring point to avoid extensive port construction, NG3 said.
From a safety perspective, the solution provides the required emergency release capability and power exchange capacities are up to 13 MVA under 11 kV, although a 1 kV 2000 A configuration is available to connect smaller vessels to their main distribution voltage and avoid the need for an onboard transformer. The solution is said to meet all IEC 80005 and OCIMF requirements.
