Engines For Floating Power Station Arrive At Cascade General

The heavy-lift ship M.V. Annemieke arrived at the Portland Shipyard on November 18th to off-load five MAN B&W 48/60 18-cylinder diesel engines, each weighing 330 tonnes, onto a power barge under construction by Cascade General. When complete this 279 feet (85 meter) X 104 feet (31.8 meter) floating power station will house seven of these 18.9 MW engines with a total generating output of 124-megawatts, 35 miles of cable and 5 miles of piping. It will be based in Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala.

The barge design makes extensive use of modular construction and advanced outfitting, from the deckhouse on the foredeck to the forward and aft separator room, which was lowered into a hull void. The aft pump room module, complete with sea chests and 8 large sea water pumps with suction piping, was slotted into the barge's U-shaped stern at the dockside, saving weeks in building time.

The deckhouse, which accommodates workshops, offices, supply rooms, crew day quarters, all switchgear and transformers, was constructed in one of the yard's assembly buildings and lifted into place by a floating crane. The engine hall, as big as a high school gym, was erected on the dockside and will be lifted into place in three sections. The hall will be surmounted by an imposing array of exhaust stacks rising 100' above the main deck.

Fuel and water tanks are located below the main deck together with all auxiliary machinery. Total fuel capacity will be approximately 1,000,000 liters of heavy fuel oil and 265,000 liters of light fuel oil. The seven fully-automated V-18 generating units each have an output of 25,740hp (18,900KW)--sufficient to drive a medium size ship.

"The load-out was a significant landmark in a demanding production schedule," stated Cascade General Executive Vice President Suren Menon. "We are using the most efficient building systems possible throughout this project. Prior to the load-out all the below-deck machinery was fitted onto modules which were lowered into the hull. This is a clear demonstration of our ability to be competitive in marine and industrial construction. It's our intention to bring more new building into Portland Shipyard in the year 2000," he added.

The new barge, with a loaded draft of 11.8 feet (3.6 meters) will be moored to pilings in a tidal estuary and connected to the shore by a vehicle ramp. It will have two parallel cooling systems giving a choice of saltwater or radiator cooling. It will be transported from Portland onboard a heavy-lift ship but can be moved by tugs in sheltered waters.

A reliable electrical supply is one of the essential services lacking in Central America where recent hurricanes caused catastrophic flooding. Small, floating power stations have proved to be an effective way to meet the need for power, avoiding the many problems and delays inherent in building onshore. The new design will be capable of replacing the two smaller barges currently in use in Puerto Quetzal.

The power barge is owned by Enron Energy of Houston, Texas, the overall design is by Kvaerner Masa Marine of Vancouver B.C. MAN B&W is the prime contractor, Cascade General is responsible for the on-site construction and assembly.

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Cascade General operates Portland Shipyard, the largest and most complete ship repair and industrial facility on the West Coast of the United States. We provide full-service repairs and conversions for tankers, cruise ships, bulk carriers, container ships, government vessels, tugs, barges and workboats. Cascade General's Portland facility includes a 60-acre (24.2 ha) yard, 550,000 square feet (51,096 square meters) of craft shops, more than 7,600 ft. (2,326 meters) of full-service repair berths, and two floating dry docks.