WARTSILA WATCH:

• Wärtsilä Land & Sea Academy training centre opens in India

4 December 2006: Wärtsilä today opened a Wärtsilä Land & Sea Academy (WLSA) training centre at its existing technology school in Khopoli, India. This is the fourth WLSA regional centre of Wärtsilä for global coverage of training and competence management services to ship owners and power plant owners. The other three are in Turku, Finland which opened in January 2006; in Subic Bay, the Philippines, and in Fort Lauderdale, USA. These training centres form the spine in the global network of other locations at which WLSA also provides training services.

"The training centre at Khopoli will provide high-quality training to international standards for shipowners and power plant owners, covering operation, maintenance and management. For our customers, this is a clear message of Wärtsilä being a total service provider catering to all their needs at a location convenient to them," says Mr Pierpaolo Barbone, Vice President Field Service.

The WLSA scope of service extends from the basic off-the-shelf, standard product courses to a full range of courses for power plants, ship power and propulsion equipment in connection with competency qualifications.

The first courses at the new training centre will commence in December 2006. The trainees will be able to take advantage of the Khopoli factory's facilities for reconditioning, machining, assembly, etc., for thorough practical training. In addition to well-equipped classrooms, there are workshops for practical training also on engines, propulsion equipment, marine electrical equipment, engine room ancillary equipment and control systems.

The Wärtsilä Land & Sea Academy through its regional training centres is committed to continuous development of its services to support the changing business demands of the customers today and for the future.


• Wärtsilä-run research consortium given 1.0 million euro EU grant to develop new renewable fuels technology for marine vessels

4 December 2006: The European Union has chosen a research consortium coordinated by Wärtsilä to receive a EUR 1.0 million grant to develop the use of methanol-consuming fuel cells to provide electrical power to marine vessels. The project is entitled "Validation of a Renewable Methanol Based Auxiliary Power System for Commercial Vessels" (METHAPU). The entire project costs EUR 1.9 million.

The main purpose of the project is to develop and validate renewable-fuel-based technology on board a cargo vessel involved in international trade. Wärtsilä's task in the project is to study the suitability of a methanol-based fuel cell system on board the cargo vessel. A further important aim of the project is to lay the technical groundwork to support the introduction of the regulations necessary to allowing the use of methanol as a marine fuel. The specific components of the technology to be validated are methanol fuel bunkering, distribution, storage system and a solid oxide fuel cell system that consumes methanol. The consortium is made up of world-class players in the field of fuel cell system integration, sustainable shipping, classification work and environmental assessment.

The consortium's research will deal with the SOFC unit of 250 kW -class and the focus is on marine application issues, as well as the unit's safety and reliability aspects. For marine validation purposes a smaller 20 kW unit will be installed on board a Wallenius Marine carcarrier. The 20 kW unit will be factory-tested, laboratory-tested and approved before installation. The installation, likewise, will be approved before the unit and its carrying vessel begin to sail on world trade routes. A lifecycle assessment and an operational safety assessment will be made. The results of the validation run and the tests will contribute to the second and final part of the research - the marine-compatibility of the 250 kW unit, its safety and reliability.

The project will take two and a half years, one year of which is dedicated to the application's validation. The regulations and technical requirements for using methanol as a marine fuel will pave the way for the commercial use of methanol-consuming fuel cells on board commercial vessels. This research project also serves as a springboard for future research related to sustainable society; specifically, new greener marine power sources and a methanol-based economy.

"We are very happy to have been selected for the EU grant. The construction and operation of this research unit running on renewable methanol will open up attractive opportunities for using sustainable fuels for fuel-cell-based distributed generation and auxiliary power units in large ships. In particular, this is an interesting option for reducing ship emissions when harbouring," says Erkko Fontell, General Manager, Fuel Cells, at Wärtsilä.

"Operation of the unit will also provide us with very important experience related to both the system's design and its performance parameters such as electrical efficiency and stack durability," he adds.

The consortium consists of world-class organizations including Wärtsilä Corporation, Lloyd's Register, Wallenius Marine, the University of Genoa and Det Norske Veritas AS.


• Wärtsilä acquires German ship design company Schiffko

7 December 2006: Wärtsilä Corporation has signed an agreement to acquire the German ship design company group SCHIFFKO. SCHIFFKO is privately-owned and today has annual net sales totaling approximately EUR 4 million and some 25 employees.

SCHIFFKO specializes in the planning and design of ships especially in the container, research and offshore vessel segments. It also provides consultancy including project management and also all kinds of supervisory work for shipowners and shipyards utilizing SCHIFFKO's extended global maritime network of partners and experts. The company has a strong reputation and market position in these segments. SCHIFFKO is located in Hamburg, Germany, but operates globally.

According to Mr Jaakko Eskola, Group Vice President, Ship Power, Wärtsilä Corporation, the acquisition supports Wärtsilä's strategic focus to grow as a system integrator and provider of total solutions to the shipping and shipbuilding market. The acquired business will add ship design expertise to Wärtsilä's wide product and service offering. The acquisition of SCHIFFKO supports the development of Wärtsilä's low-speed engine business in Asia and especially in the Chinese market.

Commenting on the transaction, Mr Berend Pruin, Chairman of SCHIFFKO and chief representative of its shareholders, stated: "We think our customers will benefit markedly from the broader offering and resources the Wärtsilä network brings. For SCHIFFKO's design business, its customers and our employees, the acquisition will offer enhanced opportunities as part of Wärtsilä's total service offering and global network."

SCHIFFKO has 50 years experience in planning and design in the marine field. It has been involved in far more than 2500 ship design projects in 60 countries over the world. The SCHIFFKO group of companies includes SCHIFFKO GmbH Forschung und Entwicklung maritimer Systeme and SCHIFFKO GmbH Multifunktionales Ingenieurbüro als Maritimes Innovationszentrum (SCHIFFKO).

The deal is planned to close in Q4 2006.


• Wärtsilä in Brief:

Wärtsilä enhances the business of its customers by providing them with complete lifecycle power solutions. When creating better and environmentally compatible technologies, Wärtsilä focuses on the marine and energy markets with products and solutions as well as services. Through innovative products and services, Wärtsilä sets out to be the most valued business partner of all its customers. This is achieved by the dedication of more than 13,000 professionals manning 130 Wärtsilä locations in close to 70 countries around the world.

www.wartsila.com