ABB wins Yamal LNG contract

ABB has been awarded a contract to supply electrical power and propulsion systems for the first of 16 Yamal LNG carriers. This forms part of a project to transport LNG from the Yamal peninsula in Northwest Siberia to Asia and Europe. The order was booked in the first quarter and the contract includes options to equip 15 further vessels.

A consortium of partners, headed by Novatek, have joined the Yamal project to open up gas from the Yamal peninsula, which is located inside the Arctic Circle and locked in ice for most of the year.

The LNG will be shipped out of Sabetta port using the new 170 000 m³ LNG carriers built to ice-breaking capability of ARC 7, an ice-class scale that goes up to 9. Shipment will be made to Asia via the Northern Sea Route during the summer months, resulting in substantially reduced delivery times when compared to transit via traditional routes, as well as cutting fuel consumption and ship fuel emissions.

The new building programme has been awarded to Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME), in South Korea.

Scope of supply

ABB's scope of supply includes turbochargers, generators, switchboards, transformers, electric drives, propulsion control and the Azipod^® propulsion units that will power the vessels through the arctic conditions.

The design will allow ship operations in temperatures as low as -50°C. By using Azipod propulsion units, the ship will move ahead in open water and in moderate ice conditions, and astern to cut through heavy ice. The advanced solution facilitates ship operations predominantly without ice breaker escort.

Veli-Matti Reinikkala, Head of ABB's Process Automation division, said: “Operating LNG carriers in ice-locked waters year-round requires the highest standards in safety and efficiency […] ABB is very proud to have had its technology selected for such a project.”

Adapted from press release by Callum O'Reilly

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/lng-shipping/17062014/abb_wins_yamal_lng_contract_775/