Page 40: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (June 2023)

TECH FEATURE BATTERIES

ABB

BATTERY POWER

BREAKTHROUGH IN ICE

An ABB study based on three years of operational ship data mounts a case for integrating battery power onboard modern icebreakers, writes Samuli Hänninen, who specializes in icebreaking vessels at ABB Marine & Ports. he maritime industry is still at the formative stage dynamic loads is met by oversizing generators running on of realizing the gains available from batteries, but fossil fuel – a solution which is highly inef? cient when en- the ability to scale up to megawatt-hour levels is not gine loads are low.

the only attraction for the zero-emission technology. Slow load ramping is also a common problem for diesel

T Evidence newly disclosed by ABB suggests that the engines, while new generation LNG engines are even less improvements made to power ef? ciency and responsiveness responsive. At the propulsion controls, icebreaker operators can make a decisive difference for the performance of ice- are often ready to respond but left waiting for engines to breakers operating in extreme conditions. ramp up. Time lags like this can encourage what some call

Demanding high installed power, icebreakers should also a conservative approach to operations, and others call out be ef? cient across a wide variation in power needs, especially as inef? cient: if an engine takes 10 minutes to warm up to given that they operate in areas where emissions face par- 100 percent power, crew operating at loads in the margin ticular scrutiny. However, conventionally the need for high between two and three engines will prefer to run continu- 40 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • June 2023

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