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Wärtsilä has announced that it will provide a full propulsion package for a new passenger ferry being built for the Germany-based Reederei Cassen Eils GmbH. The contract was signed in October 2013 with Fr. Fassmer GmbH, the shipyard responsible for the vessel's construction.

The new ferry is scheduled to operate between Cuxhaven and the island of Helgoland in Germany. The route will take it close to the Lower Saxon Wadden Sea national park, an ecologically sensitive UNESCO World Heritage listed area in the south-eastern part of the North Sea. Because of the need to minimize exhaust gas emissions in this area, the ferry will operate primarily on liquefied natural gas (LNG) using two 9-cylinder Wärtsilä 20DF medium-speed dual-fuel engines.

The selected engines are the latest generation of the Wärtsilä 20DF series. They are said to offer an increased output of five percent and a reduction of seven percent in fuel consumption in gas mode, compared to earlier versions of the engine.

In addition to the propulsion machinery, Wärtsilä will also supply its LNGPac fuel bunkering and supply system with related safety and automation systems. The scope of supply also includes Wärtsilä's patented Cold Recovery System, which utilises the latent heat of LNG in the ship's air conditioning systems, thus reducing the amount of electricity consumed in cooling compressors. This is said to provide "significant" operational savings and an increase in overall vessel efficiency, while adding to the environmental benefits of the Wärtsilä solution.

"As the vessel must fulfil the IMO regulations regarding SOx and NOx emissions in the North Sea's Emissions Control Area, its operations need to be ecologically friendly with the lowest possible emissions. At the same time, perfect manoeuvrability and reliability are most important. Thanks to Wärtsilä's dual-fuel technology with its built-in redundancy, the vessel can operate very efficiently and without restrictions in the emissions regulated areas. Furthermore it was very important for us to select a reliable and experienced partner. We already know Wärtsilä's capabilities as the company retrofitted our MS "Ostfriesland", delivering a full propulsion package with a minimum of interfaces," commented Dr Bernhard Brons, Chairman of AG EMS the parent company of Reederei Cassen Eils.

"The overriding priorities set by the owners for this new ferry were environmental performance, energy efficiency, and the reliability of the propulsion machinery since the ferry will be in daily service. Wärtsilä's strong reference list clearly demonstrates our capabilities in all these areas," remarked Matthias Becker, General Manager Sales, Wärtsilä Ship Power.

The vessel is scheduled to be delivered and ready for service during the first half of 2015. In April of this year, Wärtsilä was also contracted to retrofit the 'Ostfriesland', a ferry operating in the same environmentally sensitive waters, for LNG fuel use.