# Wärtsilä completes engine conversions on Chevron LNG carriers

- **Source:** https://pelavox.com/wartsila-completes-engine-conversions-on-chevron-lng-carriers/
- **Publisher:** pelavox. (The voice of shipping)
- **Author:** Helena Pierce
- **Published:** 2026-11-04T13:00:00+00:00
- **Updated:** 2026-11-03T09:45:52+00:00
- **Section:** Shipping / Gas Shipping
- **Type:** News
- **Topics:** Chevron Shipping, Chevron Transport Corporation, Gas Shipping, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, LNG, LNG Carriers, Marine Engines, Maritime Decarbonisation, Methane Emissions, Methane Slip, Spark Gas Conversion, Vessel Retrofits, Wärtsilä, Wärtsilä 50DF

Wärtsilä has completed engine conversions aboard three LNG carriers operated by Chevron Transport Corporation, marking the first completed phase of a programme designed to reduce methane emissions from existing gas-powered vessels.

The work involved converting one Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engine on each vessel to spark gas operation. Three additional LNG carriers are scheduled to undergo similar conversions during the remainder of 2026 and in 2027, bringing the planned total to six vessels.

The project forms part of a technical collaboration between Wärtsilä and Chevron Shipping that was first announced in September 2024. The companies have been working to develop an engine modification capable of reducing methane slip, the release of unburned methane during combustion.

The completion of the first three installations moves the programme beyond its initial development and commercial introduction phases, providing an operational basis for evaluating the technology aboard LNG carriers.

### Engine modification targets methane slip

The conversion changes the ignition method used by Wärtsilä’s 50DF engines, replacing diesel pilot fuel ignition with spark ignition for gas operation.

The system incorporates an electrically controlled pre-combustion chamber valve, which is intended to improve the combustion process and reduce the quantity of methane escaping unburned.

According to Wärtsilä, the technology is estimated to reduce methane slip to 1.1% of fuel use on an IMO-weighted E2-cycle basis. The figure represents an estimated performance level for the conversion technology rather than a disclosed measurement of emissions reductions across the three completed vessels.

The technology was introduced commercially in April 2025 and is available for existing vessels equipped with Wärtsilä 50DF engines used in diesel-electric propulsion systems, including LNG carriers.

### Further conversions planned

Wärtsilä and Chevron intend to continue the programme with three additional vessels, although the companies have not specified individual ship names or detailed conversion schedules.

Barbara Pickering, President of Chevron Shipping, said the collaboration would support efforts to reduce emissions from the marine transportation of energy while maintaining safe and reliable operations.

Roger Holm, President of Wärtsilä Marine, said the completed conversions demonstrated how existing propulsion technology could be modified to support lower-emission vessel operations.

The programme is focused on retrofitting engines already in service, rather than replacing the vessels or installing entirely new propulsion systems.

While the first phase has been completed, Wärtsilä has not disclosed independently verified fleet-wide emissions savings from the converted vessels or the financial value of the programme.

The remaining installations are expected to extend the application of the technology across Chevron’s LNG carrier fleet as the companies continue assessing its operational performance.

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Cite as: "Wärtsilä completes engine conversions on Chevron LNG carriers", pelavox., 4 November 2026, https://pelavox.com/wartsila-completes-engine-conversions-on-chevron-lng-carriers/