Knud E. Hansen wins two separate contracts for innovative large RoRo vessels
The Helsingør-based firm of naval architects, Knud E. Hansen, has won two separate contracts for innovative large RoRo vessels to be built in China. Wallenius-SOL has ordered up to four ultralarge, LNG-fuelled RoRo vessels, built to a Knud E. Hansen design, at Yantai CIMC Raffles Offshore Ltd. Meanwhile, China’s Nanjing Jinling Shipyard has signed up for the design of three large RoRo vessels based on a modified version of the existing Finnlines/Grimaldi/ Knud E. Hansen design.
The Wallenius-SOL project will involve the Danish design firm providing the engineering package for the ships’ construction and subsequent approval by the classification society and flag state authorities. The 5,800 lanemetre vessels, with 1A Super ice class and a speed of 20 knots, have a deadweight of 27,000 tonnes and a length of 242m. Not only will they be the largest in their class, but they will also be the first RoRo ships in this size range to be powered by LNG.
During port calls, the ships will use green electricity from shore or LNG, giving them a favourable carbon footprint whilst also eliminating other harmful emissions. The ships represent the fourth series of ultra-large RoRo vessels designed by Hansen since 2016. Gothenburg-based Wallenius- SOL, a Swedish company founded by Wallenius and Swedish Orient Line early in 2019, transports forestry products and other goods in a network covering the Gulf of Bothnia, the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. The company was set up to strengthen transport infrastructure for Finnish and Swedish industry by way of long-term agreements with cargo customers.
Meanwhile, the Finnlines RoRo designs are based on Grimaldi Green 5th Generation vessels and are therefore sister vessels to existing ships but adapted to meet the needs of the Finnish company in terms of the highest Finnish/Swedish ice class, 1A Super-class, and heavy cargo operation in cold climates. Due for delivery from 2021, the 238m-long vessels will also have a capacity of 5,800 lane metres, with 5,000m2 of space on the vehicle decks.
Innovative features on board these ships will include large lithium batteries ensuring zero emissions in port and charged by shaft generators during navigation though a peak-shaving system. Resistance of the ships’ hulls will be reduced by a Silverstream air lubrication system, which generates a thin layer of bubbles under the hull.
