MAN ES: Methanol retrofits for four-stroke engines will be available next year

July 30, 2024, by Fatima Bahtić

MAN PrimeServ, the after-sales brand of German engine manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions (MAN ES), has revealed that, from 2025, it will offer a retrofit package for the conversion of conventional MAN four-stroke engines to dual-fuel methanol operation.

MAN Energy Solutions reports that the conversion package has been under development for some time and has been tested intensively at its Augsburg, Germany plant since the summer of 2024.

MAN PrimeServ plans to convert the first four-stroke engines for a pilot customer in autumn 2025, at which stage the package will be made available to the general market.

According to MAN ES, companies will initially be able to convert existing MAN 48/60 engines to the latest MAN 51/60DF engine type with methanol capability. The engines will also be equipped with the latest control and safety systems from MAN Energy Solutions.

“Climate-neutral shipping can only be achieved with synthetic fuels and green methanol is particularly suitable for four-stroke applications due to its favourable energy-density. In this context, we have already received a large number of retrofit enquiries from customers who want to switch to methanol,” Stefan Eefting, Head of MAN PrimeServ Germany, said.

“With our new methanol-retrofit package, we can now offer customers an economically attractive opportunity to convert older engines to a future-proof type. In this way, we are protecting the climate together with our customers and ensure that their investments in our engines remain future-proof, with a very interesting ROI.”

“Converting existing engines to dual-fuel operation with synthetic fuels is of crucial importance to climate-neutral shipping. In addition to new engines, we also need concepts to decarbonise the existing fleet. After all, ships have a service life of 20 to 30 years and, from an economic point of view, retrofitting is also much more efficient than installing a new engine or building a new ship,” Bernd Siebert, Head of Retrofits & Upgrades, MAN PrimeServ, commented.

Recently, MAN ES signed a sub-agreement with China Classification Society (CCS) that will support the development project for the new MAN 21/31 dual-fuel methanol (DF-M) engine.