ABB helps save fuel consumption

Thanks to the SFCs, ro-ro vessels Corona Seaways and Hafnia Seaways, which transport large volumes of cargo between Denmark and the Baltic countries and consume vast amounts of fuel oil, will save fuel costs by 20 percent.

MAN Diesel and Turbo joined forces with ABB to test whether it was possible to reduce the fuel consumption of the ship by lowering its engine speed. When the propeller speed was reduced, this also reduced the RPM of the shaft generator leading to a lower AC Bus voltage and a lower AC Bus frequency. This resulted in significantly lower fuel consumption.

Brian Grusgaard from MAN Diesel’s is confident that in the future, ABB and MAN Diesel will be able to continue their relationship and produce good solutions for existing and future customers. “We have been very satisfied with the cooperation with ABB, and realise the great importance to choose a partner who can provide the best technical solution and providing local technical support at a high level,” he said.

The technology behind this was MAN Diesel and Turbo’s highly efficient Alpha Kappel propeller design combined with flow optimising Rudder Bulbs and ABB’s PCS100 SFC, which enables the ship’s electrical system to carry on working at the same frequency without having to consume additional fuel.