Shell has announced a five-year contract with Kongsberg for the installation of the latter’s JAWS (Just Add Water System) software on board 45 Shell-chartered LNG carriers. These are vessels that already utilize the Kongsberg Maritime K-IMS information management system application suite.
This follows a successful year-long trial, co-conducted by Kongsberg, Shell and LNG shipping services provider GasLog on board the LNG carrier Methane Julia Louise. The vessel’s shaft energy consumption was recorded for nine months prior to the JAWS installation, as well as throughout the year-long trial with the JAWS software installed. The trial demonstrated that JAWS could provide a significant fuel saving for the vessel.
JAWS is a hydrodynamic optimization program, with no additional instrumentation required. It calculates the most advantageous operating conditions in real time based on algorithms developed from historic high-frequency vessel data. The system continually issues recommendations for optimal trim and draft, helping crews cut fuel consumption and GHG emissions. JAWS provides live data that enables ship and fleet managers to monitor and report emissions savings.
The provision of JAWS as an application within the K-IMS suite renders it instantly available to all K-IMS users.
During the year-long testing phase, onboard and onshore monitoring confirmed that the JAWS software generated substantial average energy savings of 5% when its recommendations were followed. This benchmark data was compared with performance data gathered from the sister vessel Methane Becki Anne, which followed a similar trading pattern.
One immediate outcome of the tests was a commitment from NSML (Nigeria Ship Management Limited) to invest in JAWS software for 11 of its LNG carriers.
“JAWS has arrived at a pivotal time for shipping operations,” said Karrie Trauth, senior vice president of Shipping and Maritime at Shell, “when digitalization is being recognized as a key enabler for an industry determined to cut costs, reduce emissions and enhance efficiency. It was encouraging to see JAWS referenced directly in the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2021 flagship report as a key technology for delivering on emission-reducing targets in the shipping sector.”