With a top speed of 53 knots, the new offshore crew transfer vessels (CTVs) from Strategic Marine rank among the fastest of their kind.
The shipbuilding company Strategic Marine, based in Singapore, has delivered a series of three new offshore supply vessels. During sea trials, they achieved a top speed of over 53 knots under full load. The vessels are powered by Rolls-Royce 16-cylinder mtu engines from the 2000 series.
Each of the three vessels is equipped with four of these engines. The 35-meter vessels are designed as “Surface Effect Ships” (SES)—air-cushion vehicles with two hulls. Their power comes from four 16-cylinder mtu 2000M72 engines from Rolls-Royce. The ships are operated by a national oil company in Africa for personnel transfer to offshore platforms and floating production, storage, and offloading units (FPSOs).
Innovative SES design enables offshore transfers
To enable fast and safe personnel transfer to offshore platforms, the 35-meter-long vessels were designed as so-called “Surface Effect Ships” (SES). These are air-cushion vehicles equipped with twin hulls, similar to a catamaran. This design is being used for the offshore oil and gas industry for the first time.
According to reports, the vessels feature an optimized power-to-weight ratio and utilize the air cushion generated by powerful fans between the hulls to reduce drag. This combination, along with the mtu propulsion package delivering 5,760 kW per vessel, allows the ships to achieve much higher speeds than conventional monohulls or catamarans, while maintaining similar fuel consumption per operating hour.
The high speed of well over 50 knots (more than 90 km/h) ensures shorter transit times, while the reduced hull resistance saves fuel and lowers emissions.
Strategic Marine satisfied with new CTVs
“Minimizing water resistance on the hulls and maximizing the ship’s cruising and top speed was our goal when building these crew transfer vessels. The top speed of 53 knots during sea trials demonstrates that we have successfully developed and marketed this technology for offshore crew transfers. The mtu engines, with their unique power-to-weight ratio, played a key role in achieving this,” said Chan Eng Yew, CEO of Strategic Marine.
“We are extremely proud that our mtu propulsion package has contributed to the development of this extraordinary new vessel type,” said Denise Kurtulus, Senior Vice President Global Marine at Rolls-Royce Power Systems. “The excellent power-to-weight ratio and long maintenance intervals of 12,000 hours or more were key factors in selecting our engines. These product advantages support our strategic goal of increasing our share in the commercial marine market.”
