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HSC Francisco

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Francisco in Buenos Aires
History
Uruguay
NameFrancisco
NamesakePope Francis
Owner2013–present: Buquebus
RouteBuenos Aires—Montevideo
BuilderIncat, Hobart, Australia
Yard number69
Launched17 November 2012
In service2013
Home portMontevideo, Uruguay
Identification
StatusIn service
General characteristics
Tonnage7,109 GT; Summer DWT: 500 t; 1,516 tonnes of displacement[1]
Length99 m
Beam26.48 m
Installed power6 Caterpillar C18 generators for onboard power + 2 Caterpillar C9 generators for main engine services
Propulsion2 General Electric LM2500 rated at 22 MW each[2] driving 2 WÃĪrtsilÃĪ LJX1720 SR Waterjets
Speed51.8 knots (59.6 mph; 95.9 km/h) service speed, 58.2 knots (67.0 mph; 107.8 km/h) maximum
Capacity
  • 1,025 passengers
  • 150 cars[3]

Francisco is a high-speed catamaran built by Incat in Hobart, Australia. It is the first large high-speed craft powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG)[4][5] in the world.[6] The project was partly financed in 2011 by Australia's Export Finance and Insurance Corporation.[7]

She is currently the fastest passenger ship in service, reaching a speed of 58.2 knots (107.8 km/h; 67.0 mph), although her maximum continuous speed is 51.8 knots (95.9 km/h; 59.6 mph). It has a capacity of a thousand passengers and 150 cars,[8] served by 24 crew. Four 340kW diesel generators provide electricity for the ship's onboard functions.[9]

Buquebus ferry route (270 km in Rio de la Plata) between Montevideo (Uruguay) and Buenos Aires (Argentina).

The catamaran is owned and operated by Argentine-Uruguayan ferry company Buquebus. Francisco plies the 146-nautical-mile (270 km; 168 mi) route across the Río de la Plata between Buenos Aires and Montevideo,[10] in around two hours and 45 minutes. It has four travel classes and a duty-free shop.[9]

Francisco in Buenos Aires

HSC Francisco is named after Pope Francis.

LNG operation

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The company receives gas from the Vaca Muerta field via the gas network,[11] and produces 66 tons of LNG per day from seven production units at its facility in San Vicente near Buenos Aires, sufficient for two round-trips per day for the ship.

This facility has a 4.5 MW electricity grid connection, 4 MW electricity generation, and 2,000 tonne LNG storage.[12] The company sends the LNG in LNG-powered tank trucks to the ship,[13][6][14] where two tankers transfer the LNG to the ship in less than an hour.[9]

Each of the two hulls have one 43 mÂģ cryogenic double-wall stainless steel tank keeping the LNG at -163°C,[9] sufficient for 4 hours of sailing to make the roundtrip to Montevideo and back. Propulsion is by two General Electric LM2500 gas turbines, coupled with two WÃĪrtsilÃĪ water-jets,[15] ejecting 24 tons of water per second.[16] Each of the two turbines are started with a 200 kW engine–generator. The turbines burn marine gasoil for a few minutes, and automatically switch to LNG when the turbine exhaust is hot enough to vaporize the LNG through heat exchangers. Port manoeuvering is also handled on gasoil.[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ Francisco, World's Fastest Commercial Ship Powered by LNG-Fueled GE Gas Turbines (PDF), GE Aviation
  2. ↑ Hull 069 Incat
  3. ↑ Thakkar, Pooja (1 July 2013). "The Fastest Ship on Earth Powered By Jet Engines". Technology Digital. San Diego. Archived from the original on 13 July 2014. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  4. ↑ RebÃģn, Nuria (26 April 2018). "Buquebus: u$s 190 millones para una nueva terminal, energía solar y barco a GNL". El Cronista (in Spanish).
  5. ↑ "Buquebus - Case". MannTek. We wanted a very fast ferry but diesel engines could not deliver enough power. The solution came from the gas turbines which gave us the power for the high speeds we required
  6. 1 2 Azevedo, Paulo (16 April 2021). "The dawn of alternative marine fuels in Latin America". Maritime South. The 2013-built, 99-meter fast ferry Francisco operates in the La Plata estuary between Montevideo and Buenos Aires and was the first highspeed ferry propelled by LNG in the world. Buquebus, the catamaran's owner and operator, handles truck-to-ship bunkering in-house since then.
  7. ↑ "Australia: EFIC to Finance Incat in Construction of World's First LNG Passenger Ferry". Offshore Energy. 25 July 2011.
  8. ↑ Significant Small Ships of 2013. Royal Institution of Naval Architects. 2014. p. 22. ISBN 978 1 909024 20 5.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Babicz, Jan (2015). "WÃĪrtsilÃĪ Encyclopedia of Ship Technology" (PDF). p. 97—99. ISBN 978-952-93-5536-5.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  10. ↑ "Sea routes". Archived from the original on 2024-08-10. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
  11. ↑ "El gas de Vaca Muerta se convierte en GNL para Buquebus". Lmnenergia.com (in Spanish). 27 October 2020.
  12. ↑ "Cryogenic Gas Plant Control System". Servintel.
  13. ↑ "Plant supplying LNG to Buquebus ferry is inaugurated". LNG Industry. 13 August 2014. Argentina's President, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, has inaugurated the plant supplying LNG to ferry company Buquebus
  14. ↑ "Buquebus boosting production at small-scale LNG plant in Argentina". LNG Prime. 30 January 2024.
  15. ↑ "Guinness World Records - Fastest ferry". Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  16. ↑ DeMattia, Nico (6 July 2026). "118,000 HP To Reach 67 MPH: The HSC Francisco Is The Fastest Passenger Ship In Service". Jalopnik.
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