MAN Energy Solutions (MAN ES) has been awarded an order to supply the first S60 dual-fuel engines capable of operating on methanol.
The MAN B&W 7S60ME-LGIM dual-fuel engines have been ordered in connection with the construction of 2 × 9,300CEU pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) vessels for Chinese integrated-logistics company China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES). The order includes an option for four further vessels.
China Merchants Heavy Industry has placed the order for 2 × MAN B&W 7S60ME-LGIM (Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) engines. The order also represents the first order for a methanol-fuelled engine for a PCTC, as well as the first Chinese-built methanol engine. The engines will be built in China by engine manufacturer CSE, with respective vessel delivery set for 2025 and 2026.
The engines will feature MAN Energy Solutions’ proprietary EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) system.
“Interest in using methanol in ocean-going vessels is at an all-time high, especially in the container vessel segment but also in the vehicle-transport sector whose main players are moving to expand capacity driven by very strong Chinese car sales and to renew their fleets in response to new emission regulations,” says Bjarne Foldager, head of two-stroke business, MAN ES. “Thus, with this order, CMES is simultaneously expanding its business and improving its sustainable profitability.”
“While LNG has been the most popular alternative fuel within the PCTC segment, CMES is one of the first movers to methanol, which we expect will figure prominently as a future fuel in the maritime energy transition across all vessel segments,” he adds.
