French operator Ponant Cruises recently took delivery of a new polar-capable exploration vessel.
Classed by Bureau Veritas and built by Fincantieri subsidiary Vard at its facilities in Tulcea, Romania, Le Commandant Charcot honours French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot, who is perhaps best known for leading France's third expedition to Antarctica from 1904 to 1907. The vessel was designed by Finnish naval architects Aker Arctic in cooperation with Stirling Design International of France.
The ship features a hybrid LNG and battery propulsion system and icebreaking capability in compliance to Polar Class 2 notation. This means it is capable of sailing through 2.5-metre-thick ice floes as well as 10-metre-thick sea ice compression ridges, allowing it to easily reach its intended destinations that include the North Pole, the Weddell Sea, the Ross Sea, and Peter I Island.
Ponant has claimed Le Commandant Charcot is the first hybrid-electric polar exploration ship powered by LNG. The LNG-powered engines include four 7,700kW and two 5,500kW units. These drive a pair of ABB pod-mounted 17,000kW electric propulsion motors to enable the vessel to cruise at a speed of 15 knots in open water.
The vessel has a length of 150 metres, a beam of 28 metres, a crew of 235, and 123 staterooms that can house 245 passengers. The staterooms include 68 suites with patio doors and an owner's suite with a private balcony and interior whirlpool.
Passenger common areas include an indoor swimming pool, baths, a conservatory, a restaurant that offers panoramic outside views, an outdoor restaurant, a main lounge, an observation lounge, and a lobby. Ponant said that each of the common areas has been designed to convey French-style discreet luxury and to allow as much natural light as possible to enter the interior spaces.
Laboratories are also on board to enable the vessel to be used for scientific purposes. Experts on a range of scientific subjects and even historians will be available on a number of regular voyages. These experts are tasked with provideing lectures so that guests will become well-informed on the vessel's destinations, particularly the history, culture, and environment of each one.
To enable the vessel to reduce its emissions even further when visiting regions with fragile marine environments, Vard incorporated such features as an energy optimisation system, a waste heat recovery system, and an advanced wastewater treatment system. The energy optimisation system functions by taking precise measurements of the vessel's energy consumption under a broad range of speed settings, thus allowing the crew to make navigational adjustments as necessary throughout each sailing.
The vessel also boasts an impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP) system and antifouling anodes in the ice sea chests and filters to better protect against corrosion. These systems were supplied by Cathwell.
Le Commandant Charcot will sail under the flag of the French overseas territory of Wallis and Futuna and will begin serving regular itineraries during the 2021-2022 winter season. Destinations will include Antarctica, the Caribbean, Japan, Panama, and Costa Rica.
| Le Commandant Charcot | |
| SPECIFICATIONS | |
| Type of vessel: | Expedition cruise ship |
| Classification: | Bureau Veritas |
| Flag: | Wallis and Futuna |
| Owner: | Ponant Cruises, France |
| Operator: | Ponant Cruises, France |
| Designer: | Aker Arctic, Finland; Stirling Design International, France |
| Builder: | Vard Tulcea, Romania |
| Hull construction material: | Steel |
| Superstructure construction material: | Steel |
| Deck construction material: | Steel |
| Length overall: | 150 metres |
| Beam: | 28 metres |
| Main engines: | 4 x 7,700 kW |
| Propulsion: | 2 x ABB, each 17,000 kW |
| Auxiliary engines: | 2 x 5,500 kW |
| Cruising speed: | 15 knots |
| Other equipment installed: | Vard energy optimisation system; Vard waste heat recovery system; Cathwell antifouling anodes; Cathwell impressed current cathodic protection system |
| Type of fuel: | LNG; battery power |
| Accommodation: | 123 x staterooms; swimming pool; baths; conservatory; restaurants; lounges; lobby; laboratories |
| Crew: | 235 |
| Passengers: | 245 |
