OOCL opts for Shell lubes and services for world's largest box ship

Shell Marine is to provide Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) with its integrated marine solutions, which include lubricants and services, for the 21,413 TEU OOCL Hong Kong, the latest vessel to claim the title of "world's largest containership."

Built by South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries, the 400 m x 59 m vessel is equipped with an MAN Diesel & Turbo 11G95ME-C9.5 main engine delivering 61,430 kW mcr 78.5 rpm.

Protecting, maintaining and optimizing marine engine performance at a time when engine technology is fast developing can be challenging and complex, particularly during a period when fuel selection and vessel speed requirements are also up for discussion.

The G-type engine design used in the OOCL Hong Kong requires close oil performance monitoring and technical support, says Shell, and since the containership also needs to optimize its performance by tackling very challenging operating conditions, this means that selecting high quality cylinder oil is of utmost importance.

Drawing on its over 30-year track-record with OOCL, Shell Marine laid out its portfolio of cylinder oil options to match the owner's operating profile and fuel grade expectations as well as to protect the main engine against cold corrosion and optimize feed rates.

"As a supplier, we have considerable experience with Man Diesel & Turbo's G-type engines. It was crucial that we shared our knowledge with OOCL at the outset, and that they could offer feedback in the dialogue that ultimately led to the optimal product selection," says Jan Toschka, Shell Marine Executive Director.

In addition to Shell Marine's lubricants, Shell LubeMonitor has been deployed onboard OOCL Hong Kong – which includes a cylinder oil condition monitoring service that uses shipboard and laboratory analysis to help optimize engine performance and enable predictive maintenance. The program includes access to Shell tools and expert advice to help customers strike and maintain an acceptable balance between feed rate related cylinder oil costs and wear-related cylinder maintenance expenses. It is now enhanced with a new software package, Marine Connect, designed to transfer on-board analysis data to the She