Spain's Balearia Launches LNG-Fuelled Fast Ferry

Spanish ferry operator Balearia has launched the world's first fast ferry powered with LNG at the Armon shipyard in Gijon, Spain, it said on September 19.

The Eleanor Roosevelt vessel was built at a cost of €90mn ($106mn) and is due to enter service in the first quarter of 2021. It has a 123-m length, a 28-m width and can carry up to 1,200 passengers and 450 cars. Its four dual-fuel 8.8-MW engines, propulsion system and fuel gas system were supplied by Finland's Wartsila.

The ship can reach a speed of up to 40 knots. Its LNG tanks are large enough to enable travel for 400 nautical miles (741 km) without refuelling. In dual LNG-diesel mode, the vessel can travel for 1,900 nautical miles. 

(Picture courtesy of Balearia)