Imtech’s ventilation systems with corresponding heat recovery and sea water cooling systems have been installed, mean the engine’s heat radiation is used to evaporate the liquid and cold LNG to provide gas for the engines.
In addition, the company has installed the full range of electrical and fire extinguishing equipment.
But, it was the Power Management System (PMS) of the barge which proved the most challenging for Imtech Marine. Due to the barge’s different functionalities for summer and winter operation at different net frequencies to traditional PMS of seagoing vessels, a special technological solution was needed.
In summer, the PMS has to interact with the PMS of the AIDA vessel. During this process, the complete electrical load of the AIDA vessel will be transferred to the LNG-Hybrid barge in a specific time frame. To provide the whole load of an AIDA vessel, it is necessary that all five gas engines of the LNG-hybrid barge run in parallel and already before being connected to the ship. After the load transfer from the ship to the LNG-Hybrid Barge, all the engines on the AIDA will be stopped (cold ironing).
In 2015, the barge will serve the AIDA cruise fleet at the Port of Hamburg, reducing the cruise ships’ sulphur oxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon dioxide and particle emissions. During the summer, it will provide electrical energy for the AIDA vessels and other cruise ships, while in winter, it will provide both electrical energy and heat for the public grid.
For more information on the barge, see the GreenPort Winter issue.