MAN – 'massive number' of existing ships have engine conversion potential

The company, which is also working on a retrofit package that could make ammonia conversions ready for ships from 2025, indicated that the number represents more than 10% of MAN engines in service.   

Head of Project and PVU Sales at MAN Primeserv, Klaus Rasmussen, declared: “A massive number of vessels in the current ocean-going fleet have the potential for conversion, and our broad and continuously expanding portfolio of dual-fuel engines offers extensive options when it comes to retrofitting.”

His colleague, Thomas S. Hansen, head of the company’s Promotion and Customer Support division, noted predictions that more than half of all newbuildings are likely to be ordered with dual-fuel engines by mid-decade. “Since ships have an average lifetime of around 25 years, the retrofit of vessels will be necessary in order for the industry to decarbonise,” he said.

The engine retrofit specialist already has a track record. MAN Primeserv has now completed conversions on 12 of the 15 existing tankers in the Singapore-based BW LPG fleet. The company’s EVP, Technical and Operations, LPG, Pontus Berg, has previously explained: “Retrofitting allows us to minimise our carbon footprint – the process emits up to 97% less carbon dioxide compared to a newbuilding construction. Retrofitting also means that we do not add additional tonnage that the world does not need.”

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The company’s conventionally-fuelled ME-C engine series offers significant scope for dual-fuel retrofits. Apart from LPG, reduced carbon fuel options available today include LNG, ethane and methanol.