Baleària has announced the order of a second dual-fuel fast ferry whose engines, says the Spanish shipping company, will be more powerful and efficient than sister ship, Eleanor Roosevelt, that entered operation last year.
As previously reported, the Eleanor Roosevelt was built at the Armon shipyard – and the Spanish shipyard will also be building the new fast ferry, which will be named in honour of Spanish biochemist, Margarita Salas. The vessel is expected to enter into operation in 2024.
Like its sister ship, the new vessel will be 123 metres-long have and be able to transport 1,200 passengers and 400 vehicles. Baleària will increase the power of the Margarita Salas by 10% compared to its sister ship, with the installation of four dual Wärtsilä natural gas engines of 9,600 kW, which will allow it to reach a service speed of 35 knots. It will also have a propulsion system composed of four waterjets and will have two azimuth propellers at the bow to improve manoeuvrability in port berths.
This ship will be Baleària's tenth with dual natural gas engines, ‘a versatile technology’, noted the shipping company, ‘that can also consume 100% biomethane, as well as green hydrogen mixtures of up to 25%’.
Baleària said over the last 12 months it had been forced to reduce the use of LNG ‘due to the skyrocketing growth of its price’, although it considers it as a transitional energy, ‘since it is the cleanest and most mature that currently exists with the horizon of decarbonisation for 2050.’
In addition, Baleària will install measuring equipment on the Margarita Salas that will allow the monitoring of fuel consumption or calculating the efficiency of the engines, among other functionalities. The installation of sensors will also provide real-time information to navigate efficiently, as well as adjust speed and course to increase comfort according to the state of the sea.