VESSEL REVIEW | Botnia Enabler – Multi-fuel Con-Ro ships join Wallenius SOL fleet

China’s Yantai CIMC Raffles Shipyard recently delivered two new Con-Ro ships to Swedish shipowner Wallenius SOL.

Botnia Enabler and Baltic Enabler each have a length of 242 metres, a beam of 35.2 metres, a summer draught of 8.7 metres, and the highest Finnish-Swedish ice class to cope with the harsh winter conditions in the Gulf of Bothnia. In addition to their capacity for 5,800 lane metres of freight, the vessels also have capacity for 800 TEUs. Accommodations are meanwhile available for 22 crewmembers and 12 passengers on each ship.

The newbuilds are each powered by two WinGD-7RT-flex50DF 21,000kW multi-fuel engines capable of running on LNG, liquefied biogas, or MGO while auxiliary power is available in the form of two MAN 9L28/32DF engines. The main engines drive controllable-pitch propellers to deliver a service speed of approximately 20 knots. A range of 3,600 nautical miles can be achieved during MGO-only sailings while LNG operating mode will enable the ships to cover 1,800 nautical miles.

The owner said the ships are significantly more energy efficient per transported unit than older vessels. Also, according to calculations by the Swedish Environmental Research Institute, the ships will not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 63 per cent, but also emissions of NOx, SOx, and particulates by 96 per cent, 99 per cent, and 99 per cent, respectively.

Supplying LNG to the engines on each Con-Ro are a pair of IMO type C 685-cubic-metre fuel tanks. The onboard LNG tanks will also supply power for the ships to ensure low emissions during port visits. Alternately, shore power connections may be used.

The two 27,000DWT, ice-rated ships, which Wallenius SOL claims are the largest ice-rated multi-fuel Ro-Ro vessels in the world, will sail on regular traffic on the service that covers Zeebrugge, Antwerp, Kokkola, Skellefteå, Oulu, Kemi, and Travemünde. The owner added that the newbuilds’ introduction into service means the container-carrying capacity on the route will increase by almost 300 per cent from 336 TEUs to 1,000 TEUs compared to the ship currently serving the route, and Ro-Ro capacity will increase by almost 100 per cent.

Design work on Botnia Enabler and Baltic Enabler was provided by Danish naval architecture firm Knud E. Hansen in collaboration with Wallenius Marine, which will also be responsible for the manning and the technical operation of the new vessels. Both newbuilds are classed by Lloyd’s Register.

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