Damen launches 1,100 TEU feeder with methanol and battery readiness

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Damen Shipyards Group has launched a new 1,100 TEU container feeder aimed at regional and international operators seeking greater cargo flexibility while retaining options to switch to lower emission propulsion technologies later in the vessel’s life.

The Container Feeder 1100, or CFe 1100, has capacity for more than 1,100 TEU and combines a two stroke main engine with a hybrid PTO/PTI system. The design is prepared for future methanol conversion and battery integration, allowing owners to defer decisions on alternative propulsion while fuel availability and regulations continue to develop.

Damen lists the vessel at 150 metres long, with a beam of 24.5 metres and an 8 metre draft. Its published container intake includes 1,139 20 foot containers, 482 40 foot containers or 437 45 foot units, depending on configuration. Capacity at a homogeneous loading of 14 tonnes per TEU is more than 800 TEU.

The standard PTO/PTI arrangement is central to the design. In PTO mode, the main engine can generate electricity for onboard consumers, including refrigerated containers, reducing the requirement to run auxiliary generator sets.

The PTI function provides up to 1,250 kW of electric assistance to the propulsion system. Damen lists an economical speed of 15 knots, a maximum conventional speed of 17 knots and a boost speed of 18 knots.

For feeder operators, where vessels regularly move between sea passages and repeated port calls, that distinction can matter. Rather than sizing the main engine around occasional peak power requirements, the electric boost allows the engine to remain focused on normal economical operation while additional power is available when required.

A shore power connection is also included in the design, enabling onboard electrical demand to be supplied from land based infrastructure while alongside where suitable facilities are available.

Damen has reserved space and system arrangements in the engine room for a possible future conversion to methanol. The aft cargo hold has also been arranged so that a methanol tank can be installed later.

The methanol preparation arrangement is to be verified by classification society DNV.

A separate battery room provides another route for future propulsion changes. The approach effectively gives an owner several options without requiring batteries or methanol equipment to be installed from delivery.

The vessel can additionally be equipped with the Damen Air Cavity System, which creates a layer of air beneath part of the flat bottom to reduce resistance between the hull and water. Other optional efficiency measures include a Damen Duct, pre swirl fins and flow optimisation equipment around the propeller and rudder.

Cargo flexibility is another focus of the CFe 1100. Fixed cell guides allow different container lengths to be handled within the cargo arrangement, while the design accommodates 20, 30, 40 and 45 foot containers.

The vessel also provides connections for 174 refrigerated containers.

The deck arrangement has been optimised around 45 foot units without preventing operators from carrying other standard container sizes. Hydraulically operated pivoting hatch covers are intended to support faster access to the holds during loading and discharge.

That flexibility can be important in feeder trades, where the cargo mix received from larger hub ports can change significantly from one voyage to another. A feeder that is optimised too narrowly for one box size risks giving away usable capacity when the mix changes.

Port handling has been addressed through a flap rudder and a 1,000 kW bow thruster. A 500 kW stern thruster is available as an additional option, giving operators more manoeuvring capability in confined terminals and ports.

The CFe 1100 is also designed to Finnish Swedish Ice Class 1A requirements. Damen said this gives the vessel capability to operate in first year ice of up to 1 metre, extending its potential application to northern European and Baltic feeder routes where seasonal ice can restrict operations.

Accommodation is positioned aft, with crew members housed in individual cabins. Damen said the arrangement was selected to improve seakeeping, crew comfort and operational availability while limiting the effect on container intake.

Nard Brandsma, Manager Design of Damen Cargo Vessels, said the shipbuilder had incorporated experience from earlier cargo vessel generations and feedback received from operators.

“In the development of the CFe 1100 we have applied the experience of building cargo vessels over many years, including the valuable input we have received from our clients over successive generations of product development,” Brandsma said.

The new vessel expands Damen’s container feeder range beyond its earlier smaller designs and gives operators a vessel positioned between coastal feeder operations and larger regional container trades, with propulsion choices deliberately left open for later investment decisions.