Page 29: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (April 2018)

Systems integrator and equipment maker, Rolls-Royce, has qui- etly been adding hybridizing energy-storage packages to a diverse list of vessels. Yet, so, too, has one of its clients — Louisiana- based SEACOR Marine, as it reacts early to tightened emissions and energy-management standards, or EMS, for vessels plying

Europe and North America. Fuel savings and energy-company clients seeking green credentials are, it turns out, just part of the upside driving battery retro? ts.

BY WILLIAM STOICHEVSKI

The fuel savings to be had for keeping and ? eet owner. thrusters on battery power are a powerful Although moving in different directions selling point, to be sure. In Norway alone, — Rolls-Royce Marine losing money of late price add-ons like carbon-dioxide and sulphur but gaining energy-storage and digitalization charges helped ? re-up fuel costs by about six clients, and Seacore cash-rich but needing percent in 2017, the Finance Ministry’s na- to know where potential oil-company clients tional numbers crunchers report. are heading — neither system operator nor

Seeking a market advantage for SEACOR ? eet owner have been content to stand still vessels, CEO, John Gellert, has seized on fu- in a still-tough offshore market. Apart from el-saving battery power. He’s quick to point the six, 672 KWh upgrades for SEACOSCO, out the bene? ts for offshore operators: “The Rolls-Royce has provided energy storage so- hybridized (offshore service vessel, or OSV) lutions to six other projects, all medium to will be offered to support our customers large vessels with dynamic positioning. The worldwide, having the advantage that while projects include 1,356 KWh battery systems signi? cantly cutting fuel consumption and for two new Hurtigruten coastal steamers and emissions they are not reliant on existing in- a 200 KWh pack for an upgrade of Island Off- frastructures such as those required to support shore’s PSV, Island Crusader.

LNG-powered vessels,” he tells Maritime Re- SEACOR has moved quickly too. In 2017, porter & Engineering News by email. it partnered with Kongsberg to put batteries

In late-January 2018, six of eight platform aboard the Mexico-based SEACOR Maya, supply vessels, or PSVs — grouped by SEA- which was due for a retro? t in January, when

COR into the SEACOSCO joint venture with the work scope was enlarged to include bat-

COSCO Shipyard — were cued for Rolls- tery retro? ts for other vessels plying the Gulf

Royce ef? ciency upgrades to help them stand of Mexico: SEACOR Azteca, SEACOR War- out in the market. Among the upgrades these rior and SEACOR Viking.

brand-new boats are getting are container-

SEACOR’s offer ized Corvus battery packs and accompany- ing Rolls-Royce dynamic-positioning, ACON “The Rolls Royce packages follow on from control and EMS systems. four systems we have developed with Kongs- berg, the ? rst of which will be installed on

Rolls-Royce retro? ts the SEACOR Maya next month (April 2018)

It’s a quiet hybridization that needs some with vessel available from about mid-May, trumpeting, as the bene? ts of energy storage followed thereafter at six weekly intervals for are key selling points for system integrator the remaining three,” Gellert says.

Battery Upgrade: An illustration of the Rolls-Royce UT 771’s in SEACOR’S