Brusøyskjær has been back at sea this year

Landing respectable catches of mackerel from the North Sea and Atlanto-Scandian herring caught off the north of Norway.

Brusøyskjær isn’t short of quotas. This year it has 1657 tonnes of mackerel, 735 tonnes of North Sea herring and 3254 tonnes of Atlanto-Scandian herring, plus 325 tonnes of greater argentine.

Despite being away from fishing between the end of February and the end of August, only the argentine quota and less than 500 tonnes of mackerel were still uncaught by beginning of November, leaving a margin to finish its quota before returning to the yard for the final elements to be completed.

Mads Færk from MAN Norway, chief engineer Andres Grindvik Myhre and Niels Dal from NOENCO have carried the main responsibility for the project

The largest single expense in connection with the upgrade is the SRC catalyst and the installation. This was calculated by NOENCO at NoK6.95 million (€756,000). The new propeller and nozzle were estimated at NoK3.87 million (€356,000), while conversion to floating frequency was estimated at NoK1.20 million (€110, 000). In addition, the conversion of the main engine to the Tier II cost of just over NoK400,000 (€37.000).

MAN Energy Solutions’ after-sales division, MAN PrimeServ, upgraded the MAN 6L27/38 main engine, complete with intelligent integration of the SCR into the engine control system and combining it with sensors before and after the SCR reactor – such as the temperature control – to achieve an optimal emissions reduction. The SCR can be operated in the engine operation area from 15-100% MCR, dispensing with the need for a cut-out.

This compressor mixes urea into the exhaust. Urea binds NOx, keeping it from being released into the atmosphere

The SCR system was and the main engine’s Tier II upgrade include the introduction of a variable frequency drive (VFD) mode, and an upgrade of the Alphatronic 2000 remote control system to cut fuel consumption.

‘The customer expressed a wish to have one point of contact and the same SCR supplier as the manufacturer of the vessel’s main engine, which we were happy to accommodate as it allowed us to devise the best solution for this particular vessel and its operational requirements,’ said Mads Færk, head of sales at MAN PrimeServ Norway.

‘Despite the very tight time-schedule and difficulties arising from the corona virus, we were able to fulfil all requests for a minimal SCR footprint, high NO_x reduction rate, prompt delivery of all components, and a high efficiency propulsion system on time.’

According to Ivan Ulsund, who is both part-owner and also the technical manager of the company, they decided to go for the NOENCO proposal, since it was the best set of options, and it offered the shortest repayment period. It is not certain that Ulsund Rederi AS would have been eligible for the 80% support if they had opted for a more limited upgrade.

‘The modifications and upgrade that have been done on Brusøyskjær are scalable to other pelagic fishing vessels,’ said Niels Dal.

Changing to a floating frequency means many changes to the electricity supply on board

‘It takes time to get accurate calculations of the savings we make. But already now the skipper can tell that fuel consumption has been reduced by 20-30 litres per hour, primarily because of the floating frequency,’ Ivan Ulsund said.

‘KS Elektro has completed several other retrofitfloating frequency installations. They have received good feedback on these.’

To complete the project, the owners, NOENCO and MAN collaborated closely with Karstensens Skibsværft, who acted as the main contractor and were responsible for steelwork, while subsidiary KS Elektro has delivered a full package for frequency control on board.