Grimaldi, Bnr. JLZ8180404-406/410-416 Jinling Shipyard, GG5G RoRo "ECO Valencia/Barcelona/Livorno/Savona/Catania/Malta/Mediterranea/Adriatica/Italia"

Refvik

Administrator
Staff member
Financial Statements 2017 and Financial Review January–December 2017

EMANUELE GRIMALDI, PRESIDENT AND CEO, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE REVIEW:

“The fourth quarter ended extremely well and the result exceeded the previous year’s quarter by over 100 per cent and was EUR 14.9 (7.3) million. The January–December 2017 result improved by over 21 per cent and was EUR 82.7 (68.1) million, representing, for the third year in a row, the best ever result in Finnlines’ 70-year history. The Finnish economy started to pick up at the end of 2016 and growth accelerated during 2017. The sea freight volumes in Finland grew by over 12 per cent during the year, yet, this can be considered an unprecedented result in the Finnlines Group.

We are expanding the Finnlines fleet. In 2013, MS Europalink was sold by Finnlines to the parent company because of insufficient volumes in the Baltic at that time. In January 2018, the vessel re-joined Finnlines on the Germany–Sweden route. Slotting the vessel back into the Finnlines rotation will also trigger reshuffling elsewhere in our routes. MS Nordlink, from the Germany–Sweden route will be redeployed on the route between Finland and Sweden, that is, on the Naantali–Långnäs–Kapellskär route. MS Nordlink’s flag was changed to the Finnish flag and the vessel was renamed MS Finnswan. MS Finnswan will be one of the first ships of this length and with this level of cargo capacity to serve our customers between Finland and Sweden.

During the past years, Finnlines has made several important strategic decisions and focused on improving its operational and financial performance. During the past decade, we have spent over EUR 1 billion on major fleet renewal, green ship technology, propulsion systems, port technology, IT technology and ERP systems, and we are continuing to invest more through our EUR 70 million Energy Efficiency and Emission Reduction Programme. Under this investment programme, launched in 2017, we will lengthen four of our Breeze series ro-ro vessels, built in 2012 and 2013. These vessels will have a capacity increase of 30 per cent, meaning they will be able to carry up to 4,200 lane metres of rolling cargo. The capacity increase of around 1,000 lane metres will also considerably reduce the energy consumption per transported unit compared to the original vessel. As a result, we have been able to sharply reduce emissions per transported tonne. Two vessels have already been lengthened successfully and the remaining two will be completed by the end of April.

In response to growing volumes and market demand, Finnlines will continue to invest heavily in its fleet and has signed a letter of intent for three new 7,300 lane metre ro-ro vessels. Looking to 2018 and beyond, there are three strictly connected key elements in the way we are running our shipping business, worldwide in the Grimaldi Group, and also in Finnlines, that is – to grow together with the customers, to increase efficiency of capital employed on our fleet and to continue investing in sustainable development.”

Kilde: Finnlines
 
Grimaldi Group Orders New RoRo Vessels

In the framework of the expansion and modernisation programme of its owned fleet, as anticipated in the last months, the Grimaldi Group has signed yesterday an agreement for the construction of six ro/ro vessels, for a total investment worth over USD 400 million.

The order has been awarded to the Chinese shipyard Jinling, thus consolidating an important partnership with the Neapolitan Group, the world's leading company in the ro-ro sector.

The new vessels, whose delivery is expected as from 2020, will have a length of 238 metres, a beam of 34 metres and will have a gross tonnage of 64,000 tonnes. They will be able to transport over 7,800 linear meters of rolling units, equivalent to about 500 trailers.

Their loading capacity will be double compared to the one of the largest ships currently operated by the Neapolitan group and triple compared to the previous generation of ro/ro ships. At the same speed they will consume the same quantity of fuel, meaning a 100% increase in efficiency when measured in terms of consumption/ton of freight transported.

The design of the new buildings, called "Grimaldi Green 5th Generation" (GG5G), was developed by the Technical and Energy Saving Department of the Grimaldi Group together with the Nordic Engineering Design house Knud E. Hansen and it incorporates innovative elements partly already patented and protected by copyright.

These are the first examples of a new series of hybrid ro/ro vessels, which will use fossil fuel during navigation and electricity while in port, thus guaranteeing "zero emissions in port". The vessels will, in fact, be equipped with mega lithium batteries which will allow them to satisfy the energy requirements while at berth. These batteries will be recharged during navigation, through shaft generators adding the so-called peak shaving system, and with the aid of 600 m2 of solar panels.

The other main technical innovation of these ships is the air lubrication system under the keel creating bubble layers which will reduce friction and hydrodynamic resistance and consequently the emissions deriving from fuel consumption.

The vessels’ hull will also be covered with special no-toxic silicon paints characterized by low surface roughness which will reduce friction with the sea and does not release any substances into the water.

As far as sulphur emissions are concerned, special on-board devices will combine the sulphur released by the propulsive cylinders with the salt contained in sea water, exploiting its natural chemical reaction, producing gypsum, which can be reused on the ground or disposed of in nature.

Three of the ships will be operated by Grimaldi Lines in the Mediterranean while the remaining three, which will be ice-class, will be purchased by the Group’s sister company Finnlines and deployed in the Baltic Sea.

"Reducing fuel consumption and, consequently, cutting harmful emissions are categorical imperatives for our Group", proudly said President Gianluca Grimaldi, at the helm of the Group together with the Managing Directors Emanuele Grimaldi and Diego Pacella. "It is the first time in the world that such powerful batteries, equivalent to those equipping 90 Tesla cars, will be installed on ships", continues Diego Pacella. "We are proud that these exceptional technologies on board will make the GG5G hybrid ro/ro the most innovative and efficient vessels in the world", concludes Emanuele Grimaldi.

Kilde: Knud E. Hansen

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Illustrasjon: Knud E. Hansen
 
Grimaldi inks six more Jinling roros

Naples-based Grimaldi Group has just exercised the options for a further six roro ships with Jinling shipyard which are worth some $400m according to several sources familiar with the matter.

The Italian shipping company was also discussing the same order with Xiamen shipyard in China but in the end chose the same shipyard which already obtained the previous contract for the first six units.

The relation between Grimaldi and Jinling is therefore becoming more and more close since the same Chinese shipbuilder recently built three car carriers with a further four currently under construction with delivery scheduled within 12 months.

Kilde: Splash 24/7
 
Rolls-Royce wins Propulsion contract for nine Ro-Ro vessels

Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine has won a significant contract to deliver the propulsion system to nine vessels to be built by Nanjing Jinling Shipyard Co in China for the Italian Grimaldi Group.

The nine 238 meter long vessels are so called Ro-Ro vessels (Roll-on-Roll-off) designed to transport over 7,800 linear meters of rolling units, equivalent to about 500 trailers. They are named the Grimaldi Green 5th Generation, and will be hybrid powered by combining use of traditional fossil fuels during operation and battery power when in port. The vessels are being designed by Knud E. Hansen in Denmark.

Ottar Ristesund, Rolls-Royce, SVP Propulsion Sales – Commercial Marine, said: “We are very much looking forward to working together with the customer to deliver this large order in a timely manner. So far the cooperation between the yard, the owner and our involved team members in China, Italy and the Nordic countries has been excellent, a pivotal factor in both securing the deal and for the future success of the project.”

The delivery from Rolls-Royce includes steering gears and the Promas system, which integrates the propeller and the rudder into a single system to optimise hydrodynamic efficiency. A special hubcap is fitted to the propeller and streamlines the flow onto a bulb that is added to the rudder, effectively reducing flow separation immediately after the propeller. The result is an increase in propeller thrust as previously wasted energy is recovered from the flow. The addition of the bulb on the rudder also streamlines the flow aft of the rudder, further reducing drag.

Promas is a well proven a product developed and tested at the Rolls-Royce facility in Kristinehamn in Sweden. While the steering gear is produced at the company’s facility in Brattvåg, Norway.
The contract value to Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine is close to 300 MNOK. Delivery of the propulsion products are scheduled from 2019 and onwards to the completion of the last vessel in the series in 2021.

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Illustrasjon: Knud E. Hansen
 
Construction starts on first GG5G

Without much fanfare construction has started on the first of Grimaldi Group’s 12 GG5G Class hybrid freighters to be built by Jinling’s Yizheng shipyard, builders of the DFDS super freighters.

The ship class – of which three modified versions will sail for Finnlines – has an intake of 7,800 lanemetres on five decks. Grimaldi Group has gone the extra mile to reduce the ship’s footprints and fuel consumptions. The vessels will be fitted with exhaust gas scrubbers, 600m² of solar panels, large capacity batteries to supply the hotel load when in port as well as air lubrication technology whereby the ship will ride on a carpet of micro bubbles, hereby reducing the frictional resistance between the hull and the water.

The 64,000gt ships have a length of 238m and 34m beam. Grimaldi has offered the yard a bonus of USD 10,000 per day the ships are delivered early. More about Grimaldi’s plans with this new state-of-the-art ship class can be read in the April edition of ShippaxInfo.

Kilde: Knud E. Hansen
 
Desse tre pluss seks blir bygg nr. JLZ8180404-JLZ8180406 og JLZ8180410-JLZ8180416 ved Jinling Shipyard
 
Forøvring blei kjølen til den første, altså bygg nr. JLZ8180404 strekt den 21. august ved verftet i Kina
 
Grimaldi’s first GG5G taking shape in Jinling’s building dock

Jinling’s Yizheng shipyard has positioned itself as the world’s most prolific builder of short-sea ro-ro freighters. DFDS’s newbuilding programme is halfway with the third ship in the 6,695-lanemetre series, HOLLANDIA SEAWAYS, undergoing sea trials and expected to be handed over later this summer. The fourth, yet unnamed, vessel in the six-ship series was floated out on 5 July.

Just like the DFDS super freighters, the even larger GG5G Class freighters were designed by Knud E. Hansen, the Danish naval architecture consultancy. The first GG5G is expected to enter service between northern Italy and Spain next year. Eight more vessels will join the Grimaldi Lines fleet in the Western and Eastern Mediterranean.

Three units in the 12-ship series will be adapted for Finnlines service between the Bay of Biscay/North Sea and the Baltic, replacing lengthened Breeze Class tonnage. The three 1A Super ice-class vessels for Finnlines will have a lower intake of 5,800 lanemetres on four decks rather than five, being specifically designed for Finnlines’ typical cargo mix of trailers, containers, sto-ro paper cargo and new cars with 5,000m² of car decks.

As the name indicates, the 238m long and 34m beam GG5Gs will be ‘ultra green’ with 600m² of solar panels, large-capacity batteries to achieve zero emissions in port as well as an air lubrication system whereby the ship will ride on a carpet of micro bubbles, hereby reducing the frictional resistance between the hull and the water. The vessels will be powered by twin MAN B&W two-stroke engines driving twin propellers and will be equipped with exhaust gas scrubbers.

Kilde: Knud E. Hansen Article from © Shippax / Philippe Holthof
 
Namna på tredje, fjerde og femte blir "Eco Livorno", "Eco Savona" og "Eco Catania"
 
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