On June 19th, the first 9100 CEU dual-fuel “Aurora” class PCTC (pure car and track carrier) built by China Merchants Heavy Industries Haimen shipyard (CMHI Haimen shipyard) for Hoegh Autoliners of Norway started its first sea trial.
This is the first of a series of 12 Aurora Class PCTCs ordered by Hoegh Autoliners from CMHI, which launched in January of this year and are expected to be delivered in summer this year. Hoegh Autoliners explains that the PCTC will be sailing in the waters east of Shanghai for the next ten days. Prior to sea trials, it underwent several weeks of testing to ensure equipment readiness and seaworthiness.
Designed by Deltamarin, the PCTC can carry up to 9,100 vehicles and is equipped with 14 decks. In terms of power equipment, it is equipped with one low-speed dual-fuel main engine and three dual-fuel generator engines, which, in addition to being able to use LNG and conventional fuels, also have the DNV “ammonia ready” and “methanol ready ” notations.
It is fitted with MAN B&W multi-fuel engines supplied by MAN Energy Solutions and can run on a wide range of biofuels and conventional fuels, including LNG.With slight modifications to the engines, fuel tanks and auxiliary systems, it can be transitioned to operate on future zero-carbon fuels such as green ammonia or methanol.
Hoegh Autoliners is the world’s leading provider of ro-ro transportation services, transporting automobiles, heavy goods and break-bulk cargoes globally.Headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Hoegh Autoliners serves 60 automobile and truck operators in the global trade through a global network management system of 30 offices in 4 regions around the world. Currently, the company operates about 40 vessels with an average cargo capacity of about 6,700 CEUs, with the largest average vessel size and lowest emissions in the industry.