Rolls-Royce Environship wins international Green Technology Award
Rolls-Royce plc has received the Green Ship Technology Award for its Environship concept - a revolutionary design and system solution for cargo ships that reduces CO2 emissions by up to 40 per cent compared to similar diesel powered vessels, the company reports.
The Environship, which can be adapted for different ship types, incorporates a range of Rolls-Royce technologies to deliver efficiency savings for ship owners. These include a Bergen engine powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the Promas combined rudder and propeller, a hybrid shaft generator to optimise use of electrical power and an innovative wave-piercing hull design.
The accolade was awarded at a ceremony in Hamburg, Germany, in connection with the annual Green Ship Technology Conference.
Tony Wood, Rolls-Royce, President - Marine said: "We’re delighted to receive this award for our Environship concept, another endorsement for our belief that only a combination of technologies will maximise environmental and efficiency gains. With a number of Environship vessels already in build, 2013 will be an exciting year, as this awarding winning concept takes to the seas."
The first vessel built to the Environship standard is a fish-feed transporter currently under construction at the Vard Aukra shipyard in Norway, for the Eidsvaag shipping company. The vessel is due for delivery in May this year. In October, the first of two cargo ships for the Norwegian company Nor Lines, will be delivered by the Tsuji Heavy Industries (Jiangsu) Co Ltd in China.
Passenger ship designs are also under development. Last year Rolls-Royce announced that it had signed a teaming agreement with Italian company Lauro Shipping to design innovative new gas powered ferries based on the Environship concept.
In 2011 Environship received the Next Generation Ship Award at the Nor-Shipping exhibition.
Rolls-Royce is a world-leading provider of power systems and services for use on land, at sea and in the air, and has established a strong position in global markets - civil aerospace, defence aerospace, marine and energy. As a result of this strategy, Rolls-Royce has a broad customer base comprising more than 300 airlines, 4,000 corporate and utility aircraft and helicopter operators, 160 armed forces, more than 4,000 marine customers, including 70 navies, and energy customers in more than 80 countries. Annual underlying revenue was £12.2 billion in 2012, of which more than half came from the provision of services. The firm and announced order book stood at £60.1 billion at 31 December 2012, providing visibility of future levels of activity. Rolls-Royce employs over 45,000 people in offices, manufacturing and service facilities in over 50 countries. Over 14,000 of these employees are engineers. In 2012, Rolls-Royce invested £919 million on research and development, two thirds of which had the objective of further improving the environmental performance of its products, in particular reducing emissions. Rolls-Royce supports a global network of 28 University Technology Centres, which connect the company’s engineers with the forefront of scientific research. The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills.