Wärtsilä is committed to helping minimise the environmental footprint of the marine and energy industries. Developing the use of alternative, commercially viable clean fuels for the future is a key focus area of research and development, as is improving the connectivity, efficiency, sustainability, and safety of customer operations through the increased use of digital solutions.
Throughout the decarbonisation transformation, the company continues to invest ~4% of net sales in R&D. During 2024, R&D expenditure totalled EUR 296 million, which represents 4.6% of net sales.
Wärtsilä launched the world’s first large-scale 100% hydrogen-ready engine power plant concept. This solution can currently use natural gas to provide flexibility and balancing, and can be later converted to run on hydrogen, thereby future-proofing the journey to net zero. The concept is based on the Wärtsilä 31 engine platform.
Wärtsilä introduced to the marine market a new ultra-low emissions version of already efficient Wärtsilä 25DF engine. This is the second Wärtsilä dual-fuel engine, after the Wärtsilä 31DF engine, to be made available with NextDF technology. Wärtsilä introduced in 2023 the marine sector’s first commercially available 4-stroke engine-based solution for ammonia fuel, and will supply an equipment conversion project to Norwegian shipowner Eidesvik.
Wärtsilä introduced Quantum2, a fully integrated high-capacity battery energy storage system designed and optimised for global large-scale deployment. Wärtsilä also launched Quantum3, with new safety, cybersecurity, energy density, and sustainability design features. The high energy density of both solutions means that fewer units are needed onsite. Both solutions leverage Wärtsilä’s GEMS Digital Energy Management Platform, which includes streamlined monitoring, control, and performance insights to the battery, safety, and thermal management systems.
