Video: Meyer Werft Floats Out AIDAnova's Stern
On Monday, Meyer Werft's Papenburg yard floated out the first mega-block of the Carnival Corporation newbuild AIDAnova, the largest cruise ship built in Germany and the first vessel of her type to run on LNG.
The 400-foot stern section is built on one of two engine room modules that were constructed at the Neptun Werft shipyard in Rostock and shipped through the Kiel Canal to Papenburg. The stern mega-block contains three LNG tanks, which will carry enough fuel for a two-week supply under normal operating conditions. With LNG, the vessel will cut sulfur emissions and NOX emissions drastically, making compliance with European and future IMO environmental requirements straightforward. Her engines are dual-fuel capable, and she has diesel tanks with a capacity of 260,000 gallons if more range is required.
The AIDAnova is Meyer Werft's eighth vessel for Carnival's AIDA brand, which focuses on the German cruise market. Between its German and Finnish yards, Meyer Werft has orders for nine other LNG-fueled cruise ships, including a sister ship for AIDAnova. The Neptun Werft yard will be building the engine room modules for many of these vessels.
Germany rolls out LNG bunkering subsidies
On Wednesday, Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) published application guidelines for its generous new LNG conversion subsidies, which it first announced in August. Shipowners may apply for up to $18 million in grant funding for converting German vessels to LNG or dual-fuel bunkering, including expenses related to tanks, fuel systems and auxiliary systems. The available funding rate is up to 60 percent of the cost of the project for small shipowning entities, falling to 40 percent for large enterprises, and newbuild projects are eligible. The vessels must spend at least half of their operating hours in European waters.
The German Shipowners' Association (VDR) and the German Shipbuilding and Ocean Industries Association (VSM) greeted the grant program with praise. “From the point of view of the shipbuilding industry, it must be ensured that the technology leadership of the German industry is supported," said VSM managing director Ralf Sören Marquardt. VDR chief executive Ralf Nagel said that the measure "will help German shipowners cope with the substantial capital costs associated with gas-operated ships while delivering major environmental benefits."