On July 11th, 2018, Polish company Remontowa Shipbuilding signed the contract for the two ferries for Norled, based on the LMG Marin design LMG 120-DEH.
The new ferries will be equipped with a diesel electric hybrid system. In normal operation the entire required power will be taken from two battery packs installed on board. The batteries will be recharged from the land grid while the vessels are docked, typically about 11 minutes. A fast charging solution of pantograph or plug-in type will therefore be used in order to ensure that the required state of charge of the batteries is maintained. The shore charging system will be integrated with an automatic mooring system (of vacuum or magnetic type) holding the ferries while docked and giving the “green light” for the charging process to start. The intention is to use the generating sets that the vessels will be equipped with (running on 100% biodiesel), only in case of emergency.
The new ferries will service the Festøya-Solavågen connection, close to Ålesund in Norway. They will be 114,4m long, 17,7m wide and capable of taking on board up to 120 personal cars and 296 passengers. The equipment on board will be selected based on maximum efficiency criteria. A good example are the thrusters which will be pulling type units with integrated Permanent Magnet motors ensuring high efficiency even at very low loads.
The ferries will be built according to the LMG 120-DEH design developed by LMG Marin who will also deliver the complete Class documentation. The design LMG 120-DEH features many energy efficient solutions including general use of heat recovery, full LED lighting, highly efficiency electric power transmission, demand-dependent HVAC system, low friction hull paint and lightweight construction.
The LMG 120-DEH design (with registered design protection) is also characterized by an innovative vehicle deck and accommodation arrangement that allows for fast vehicle loading, significant energy savings and improved safety for crew and passengers.
The vessels are expected to be delivered in the Fourth Quarter of 2019.
