OSG to upgrade main engines on its four Alaska-class tankers
All four of OSG’s Alaska-class tankers are to be converted to dual-fuel methanol vessels from 2024 to 2026, including the recently bought Alaskan Frontier (Source: OSG)
Tampa, Florida-based shipowner Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) is to upgrade all four Suezmax tankers in its Alaska-class fleet with dual-fuel methanol engines from MAN Energy Solutions.
The Lifecycle Engine Upgrade (LCU) programme is scheduled to start in early 2024 in conjunction with plans to reactivate the recently acquired Alaskan Frontier. The remaining engine upgrades of Alaskan Explorer, Alaskan Legend and Alaskan Navigator will be carried out during scheduled drydockings during the period from 2024 to 2026.
The significant engine and operational improvements to the four sister ships will result in environmental benefits as well as extending their useful commercial life, said OSG. All four double-hulled tankers were built between 2004 and 2006.
The LCU of the Alaskan-class tankers is costing OSG close to USD100 million and involves a series of technical and commercial enhancements of the tankers' original MAN type 48/60 diesel engines installed nearly 20 years ago, with engine components replaced by newer, more fuel-efficient models.
This work will lead to reduced fuel consumption and lower greenhouse gas emissions, while at the same time the tankers will be fitted with advanced engine control systems and optimisation technologies to allow crews to operate the vessels in a more efficient manner, maximising performance, while reducing the vessels’ environmental impact.
Following their main engine conversions, the four Alaska-class tankers will meet IMO’s Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) requirements without sacrificing the operational ability of the vessels for years to come, said OSG.
OSG bought the 193,049dwt 2004-built Alaskan Frontier from the UK’s BP Shippings US subsidiary in November 2023. The tanker had been in cold lay-up in Malaysia since 2019 and is expected back in service during the fourth quarter of 2024 following major reactivation work and her main engine conversion.
Work on Alaskan Frontier will include the fitting of a ballast water treatment System (BWTS) as well as other necessary improvements for commercial use. The cost of purchasing this vessel and its upgrade is believed to be somewhere in the region of USD 50 million.
