Longship bets on methanol-ready hybrid vessels

Dutch shipping company Longship has ordered four methanol-ready cargo newbuilds that use hybrid propulsion systems.

PHOTO: Concept models of Longship’s methanol-ready cargo ships. Longship

The vessels have been designed in partnership with Groningen-based naval engineering firm Ankerbeer BV, to transport biomass solid fuels. The company claims that the vessels’ diesel-electric propulsion system can reduce energy consumption by about 45% compared to conventional vessels of the same size and can be retrofitted to run on alternative fuels.

On completion, the ships will hold the class notation Prepared for Methanol C, enabling them to switch to methanol as an alternative fuel in the future.

The ships will be built at the Atlas Shipyard in Turkey, with the first delivery scheduled for spring 2024.

Longship chief executive Øyvind Sivertsen says the vessels “will meet requirements well before they become mandatory to the shipping industry.”

By Tuhin Roy

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