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Steerprop Ltd. has been contracted to deliver the main 'fuel-saving' propulsion system for a passenger ferry due to be built for Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ) by the Italian shipbuilding firm Fincantieri.

The new vessel will be larger and faster than its predecessor, but despite its larger size, the vessel will also be more efficient and environmentally friendly through the use of innovative technical solutions to improve total efficiency. Part of this efficiency will be due to the propulsion system used.

The vessel, ice-classed by Lloyd’s Register in the Finnish-Swedish 1 A ice-class, will operate year-round in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada, starting in late 2014.

Steerprop Ltd. has been contracted to deliver two SP 120 ECO CRP propulsors. Each of these propulsors has a power rating 7 000 kW. To ensure their safe operation year round, the propulsors will be ice-classed in the Finnish-Swedish 1 A Super ice-class.

Utilizing the high efficiency Steerprop Dual-End Contra Rotating Propellers (CRP), these propulsors are projected to offer a significant increase in efficiency - and thus cut down on both emissions and fuel consumption.

Image: M.V. Camille-Marcoux Ferry, operated by Société des traversiers du Québec