Fuel-efficient propulsion systems delivered from Chinese factory

The Shanghai Azipod C factory, which was established in 2011 to serve customers in the Asian region, recently delivered four Azipod C propulsion systems for the Blue Ocean II Wind Turbine Installation Vessel built by Samsung Shipyard in Korea.

“The Azipod C factory in Shanghai helps us meet the fast-growing demand of the Chinese shipyards for high-end vessels, at the same time, allowing us to get closer to customers of other key shipbuilding markets like Japan and South Korea,” said Heikki Soljama, global head of ABB’s Marine and Cranes Business Unit.

ABB states that the Azipod C marine propulsion system is compact and therefore saves space inside the vessel hull for more efficiency in ship design and equipment placement.

The company also claims that the propulsion unit can help reduce vessels’ fuel consumption by 25 percent while also improving their manoeuvring capabilities. It states that improved manoeuvrability will help the Blue Ocean vessels operate in a wider weather window, providing more flexibility in the transportation and installation of offshore wind foundation materials and turbines of all types and sizes.

This is a repeat order from Samsung Shipyard, following a similar scope for the first Blue Ocean Wind Turbine Installation Vessel delivered in September 2011.

The two Wind Turbine Installation Vessels are for Singapore based offshore oil and gas industry service provider Swire Pacific Offshore Operation (Pte.) Ltd.