DISTINCTIVE Vessels of 2014 Our award-winning selections for this year represent a diverse portfolio of innovative coastal, offshore and oceangoing vessels, with a special focus on more fuel efficient, cleaner designs
Harvey Gulf will be the first U.S. flag vessel to burn LNG as a fuel
Harvey Energy First U.S. dual fuel PSV There have been few vessels in U.S. shipbuilding history that have been more anticipated than the Harvey Energy. The first in a series of six 310-foot-long dual fuel DPS-2 Platform Supply Vessels, the Harvey Energy will be the first offshore service vessel—or any type of U.S. flag vessel—to burn Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as fuel. As we went to press, the Harvey Energy was undergoing sea trials in anticipation of its delivery to New Orleans-based Harvey Gulf International Marine. The 310 ft x 64 ft x 25.5 ft PSV is designed by Vard Marine, Inc., (formerly STX Marine), Vancouver, and Houston, and built by the Gulf Coast Shipyard Group. Harvey Gulf, Vard Marine, and Gulf Coast Shipyard worked closely with classification society ABS and propulsion specialist Wärtsilä on the vessel’s groundbreaking development. While the technology is well proven outside the U.S.—in Norway, for example—the group had to work closely with the U.S. Coast Guard on a number of technology hurdles. One hurdle was the placement of the 130-ton fuel LNG tank, which was installed in the centerline of the vessel below the cargo deck. When operating on LNG, the Harvey Gulf is expected to have a fuel consumption of 393 gal/hr when sailing at its maximum speed of 14 knots. 22 MARINE LOG December 2014
Three Wärtsilä 6L34DF main generators, with a total rating of 7,530 kW, will provide propulsion power. The main propulsion will be two Wärtsilä FS300-S/WN nozzled azimuthing propellers. The Harvey Energy is classed as +A1, Offshore Support Vessel, +AMS, +ACCU, +DPS-2, ENVIRO+, GP, UWILD, FFV-1, GFS(Dual Fuel Diesel), Circle E, with certifications of Subchapter I, Subchapter L, and SOLAS. All of the dual fuel PSVs in the series of six PSVs will be fitted with Wärtsilä’s LNGPac gas control system. Earlier this year, Wärtsilä was awarded a contract to supply the control system for a shore-LNG fuelling facility in Port Fourchon, LA, owned by New Orleans-based Harvey Gulf International Marine, Inc. The facility will be used to fuel the Harvey Energy and its sister dual fuel platform supply vessels (PSVs). The Harvey Energy represents a bold, new generation of U.S.built vessels that will burn LNG—a move predicated by compliance with stricter emissions regulations when operating in the North American Emissions Control Area (ECA) and the economics of operating on clean-burning, cheap natural gas.