(VANTAA, Finland) — An advanced Navis Nav DP 4000 dynamic positioning system was specified for F.A-Gauthier, the first gas-powered passenger ship to be built in Italy. The technology ensures that the recently-delivered ro-ro vessel achieves optimum performance in the difficult navigational conditions it faces in North America’s Gulf of St Lawrence.
The 133-meter, 800-passenger capacity vessel, delivered by the Fincantieri group’s Castellammare di Stabia shipyard to Canadian operator La Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ), is the first ferry of its type to operate in North America. It features a unique, integrated diesel electric propulsion system, with four power generators that can run on either LNG or marine diesel oil.
Finland-based Navis Engineering supplied its dynamic position technology to the new ferry, which has been accorded DP (CM) notation by Lloyd's Register.
Navis also supplied DP technology to the world’s first LNG-powered ferry, Viking Grace, which was delivered to Viking Lines in 2012.
F.A.-Gauthier is capable of service speeds of up to 20 knots and will provide year-round passenger and vehicle transportation on routes linking the communities of Matane, Baie, Comeau and Godbout. With an anticipated 1,600 sailings a year, the vessel is expected to transport over 200,000 passengers and close to 120,000 vehicles a year. The vessel has the ice class 1A, and is able to break sea ice, thanks to an innovative bow and stern, designed and patented by Fincantieri.
