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Late last month, engineers from NASSCO - a General Dynamics company - placed what is described as "the world's first dual-fuel slow-speed engine" into the world’s first liquified-natural-gas(LNG)-powered containership. It was also the first commercial installation of MAN Diesel and Turbo's new ME-GI engine.

Doosan Engine built the 8L70ME-C8.2GI engine under license from the designer MAN Diesel and Turbo. The engine weighs 539 tonnes.

TOTE Shipholdings, Inc., a subsidiary of TOTE, is the first company to use these engines in their vessels. The two new Marlin-class ships, currently being built at NASSCO's shipyard in San Diego, are due to be used in the Puerto Rico trade and are expected to enter the trade in late 2015 and early 2016 respectively.

"This large slow-speed two-stroke dual-fuel engine is the first of its kind in the world," noted Phil Morrell, Vice President of Commercial Marine Operations for TOTE Services, the division of TOTE that is responsible for ship's technical management and crewing. "Using this engine in our new Marlin-class vessels will not only drastically reduce our sulphur oxide (SOx), nitrous oxide (NOx), particulate matter and greenhouse gas emissions as a result of using liquefied natural gas, but it will also improve our efficiency, meaning these ships will require less energy to travel the same distance and help preserve the environment."

"Landing the world's first low-speed, dual-fuel engine on the lead Marlin-class ship signifies a shift into a new era of green ship technology. NASSCO is proud to partner with TOTE to construct these cutting-edge ships," stated Parker Larson, Director of Commercial Programs for General Dynamics NASSCO.

Hull 495, the first of the two Marlin-class vessels being built by NASSCO, is scheduled to be completed in early 2015.