Norwegian shipping company Höegh Autoliners has formally named a new pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) fitted with environment-friendly technologies.
Built by China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu), Höegh Borealis is the second in the 12-strong Aurora-class designed for the transport of rolling cargo such as up to 9,100 cars, agricultural machinery, and mining equipment as well as general solo cargo. The class lead ship, Höegh Aurora, was delivered earlier this year.
Like its earlier sister, the newbuild has an LOA of 199.92 metres, a beam of 37.62 metres, a draught of 10.8 metres, a depth of 14.52 metres, and a deadweight tonnage of 25,563. According to the owner, these dimensions make the Aurora-class PCTCs the largest car carriers ever built.
The freight will be carried on 14 decks including five liftable decks. All decks have been laid out to also house electric vehicles, and these are also strengthened to allow transport of heavier project cargo if needed.
The Aurora-class PCTCs will run on LNG and low-sulphur MGO, though the vessels' dual-fuel engines are designed to be converted to also run on ammonia in the future. These eight vessels also have DNV's ammonia and methanol ready notation. The current propulsion arrangement delivers a service speed of 14.5 knots.