GE Transportation, in conjunction with its distributor Marinsa Peru SA, is to supply Pesquera Diamante SA, of Peru, with 7FDM medium-speed diesel engines for powering newly constructed boats and repowering the company’s entire fleet of purseine net fishing boats
According to John Manison, manager of GE Transportation’s marine and stationary power business, this is the first use of GE’s eight cylinder diesel engine to power fishing vessels.
“We decided to replace all the engines in our fleet with the state-of-the-art GE engines,” said Fernando Ribaudo, chief executive officer of Pesquera Diamante, S.A., the third largest fishmeal producer in Peru. Ribaudo added, “The GE engines will provide for better fuel economy, lower life cycle costs and local parts and service support through GE’s distributor, Marinsa Peru S.A.”
GE will deliver eight-cylinder units rated at 1,400 brake horsepower (bhp) and 12-cylinder models rated at 2,000 bhp. New vessel construction and repowering of the Pesquera Diamante fleet has already begun, and will continue over a four-year period. All the diesel engines will be manufactured at GE’s Grove City, Pa., facility. Several of the engines for Pesquera Diamante will be shipped in 2005, while the remainder will be delivered over the next four years.
8 Cylinder Engine
GE saw the demand, especially in international marine markets, for a lower horsepower engine. The company then developed an engine that offers lower life cycle costs compared to high speed diesel engines.
“The 8 cylinder model is ideal
for diverse marine applications such as fast ferries, offshore supply vessels, tug boats, inland waterway vessels,
as well as fishing vessels and
offshore drilling platforms. We also feel that there is a strong market
for this engine where peaking
and primary power is needed,” Manison added.
Similar to all of the diesel
engines in GE’s product line, the 8 cylinder is inherently designed for ease
of maintenance. For instance, the
fully integrated power assembly
offers quick engine change-out.
The sectional camshaft allows for replacement of one section of the shaft, eliminating the need for complete engine disassembly.
In addition, the 8, 12 and 16 cylinder engines employ GE’s Electronic Fuel Injected (EFI) technology. The worldwide operating fleet of EFI equipped engines is more than 10,000 strong, accumulating over 100 million operating hours.
