Wärtsilä has secured an contract to provide main engines, retractable thrusters and exhaust cleaning equipment for two new vessels being built for the China Ocean Mineral Resources R&D Association (COMRA).
The ships are being built at the CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding an[ds_preview]d Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Group yards. Each vessel will be powered by two 4-cylinder Wärtsilä 20 engines and two Wärtsilä 26 engines, one with a 9-cylinder and one with an 8-cylinder configuration.
First Chinese vessels with NOR systems
They will also be fitted with retractable thrusters manufactured by the Finnish company. The engine exhaust will be cleaned with a Wärtsilä NOx Reducer (NOR) to comply with the International Maritime Organisation‘s (IMO) Tier III regulations relating to emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx), and to be Engine International Air Pollution Prevention (EIAPP) certified. According to the Finnish the engines will also be mounted in such a way that noise and vibration are minimised, thus providing an undisturbed working environment to ensure the accuracy of the data collected during survey activities, and to ensure the comfort of the research personnel. The vessels will be the first Chinese research vessels to operate NOR systems.
The Wärtsilä retractable thrusters provide them with manoeuvring and station keeping capabilities. They feature a compact integrated design with all auxiliary systems pre-mounted on the unit, thus minimising the space needed, the company stated. The thrusters have respectively 850 kW and 1000 kW power output.
When delivered, one of the vessels, the 98 m long »Da Yang 2 Hao«, will be used for scientific surveying, including deep sea extreme environment detection. The other vessel will be a 90 m long manned submersible support mother ship. They are both scheduled for delivery in March 2019 while the Wärtsilä equipment will be delivered at the end of 2017.
