By
Rebecca Gibson |
German shipyard Lloyd Werft Bremerhaven is to carry out a 76-day refit project on Phoenix Reisen’s Artania between 29 September and 6 December.
During the drydock at Kaiserdock II, Lloyd Werft will replace Artania’s existing Pielstick Diesels Type PC4-2 engine system with four efficient Type 12V32 main engines from Wärtsilä. Four intermediate transmission units will also be fitted between the existing gearing units and the new main engines. The ship will also be fitted with a new Wärtsilä Type 8L32 auxiliary diesel engine.
The yard will also add new suppressors, modernise the onboard fresh water system, carry out extensive steel repair work and build balconies for 152 cabins on decks 7 and 8. Scheduled maintenance work will also be carried out on the ship’s rudder plant and propellers prior to the first test of her new engine plant in the North Sea in mid-November. Phoneix Reisen will also renovate Artania’s public and leisure areas, bars and restaurants.
“We won this large contract, which is very demanding in every respect, despite some stiff competition from other yards,” said Rüdiger Pallentin, Lloyd Werft chairman. “Now our order books are chock-full. There’s just no room for any more at the moment. Sometimes the yard is simply too small.”
Although the project will take 76-days, the ship will only spend 60 of these days in drydock and spend the remaining 16 days undertaking sea trials.
“As usual, the schedule is more than tight,” said André Stegmann, project manager. “But we will still get the job done on time.”
Lloyd Werft has a long history of working with the 44,588 gt Artania. Built by Wärtsilä at the Helsinki New Shipyard in Finland in 1984, the ship first sailed as P&O Cruises’ Royal Princess. She was converted into Artemis in 2006 at the Lloyd Werft yard, returning in 2010 for technology upgrades and again in 2011 to be converted into Artania for V.Ships and Phoenix Reisen over a 28-day period.