Wärtsilä has signed a five year service agreement covering two newly delivered TMS Cardiff Gas LNG carriers, combining predictive maintenance, flexible service planning and continuous remote support for propulsion and auxiliary machinery.
The agreement covers the 174,000m³ LNG carriers Al Thurayya and Al Majhoulah, both of which have recently entered service. Each vessel is fitted with two WinGD 5X72DF dual-fuel two-stroke main engines, four Wärtsilä 34DF auxiliary engines and Wärtsilä gas valve units, giving the service programme responsibility across several connected machinery systems.
Wärtsilä booked the agreement during the third quarter of 2026, extending a relationship with TMS Cardiff Gas that already includes a separate five year lifecycle contract covering seven LNG carriers and renewed during 2025. The two new vessels will therefore enter an established maintenance structure rather than using a different service model from the wider fleet.
The new scope includes Dynamic Maintenance Planning, Expert Insight predictive maintenance, continuous remote operational support and contract management. Machinery condition and operating data can be used to adjust service intervals within the permitted maintenance framework, allowing overhaul planning to reflect how equipment has actually been operated alongside the running hours accumulated.
That information becomes useful because engines do not experience identical wear simply because they have run for the same number of hours. Load, fuel mode, temperature and operating profile all influence component condition, so combining time based maintenance limits with measured behaviour can help engineers concentrate inspection and service work where deterioration is actually developing.
Expert Insight adds continuous analysis of operating data so abnormal patterns can be identified before they become larger faults. Temperatures, pressures and other parameters need to be interpreted in the context of engine load and fuel mode because a value that is normal under one operating condition may indicate deterioration under another.
Reliable diagnosis therefore depends on stable data from the vessel as well as engineering judgement ashore. Sensors and communications provide the operating record, while engineers still determine whether a change reflects normal operating variation, instrumentation behaviour or a developing mechanical problem requiring intervention.
That maintenance process has direct operational consequences on an LNG carrier because propulsion, auxiliary power, cargo systems and voyage schedules are tightly connected. A machinery fault can delay loading or discharge commitments even when the vessel remains safe, while planned service work has to fit around voyages and terminal calls rather than being scheduled independently from commercial operation.
The machinery arrangement on Al Thurayya and Al Majhoulah creates several maintenance streams within that operating schedule. The WinGD 5X72DF engines provide primary propulsion, the Wärtsilä 34DF units supply auxiliary power and gas valve units regulate fuel gas delivery associated with dual-fuel operation. Condition across those systems has to remain coordinated because a fault in auxiliary or fuel equipment can affect the availability of otherwise healthy engines.
TMS Cardiff Gas also uses Wärtsilä’s Fleet Optimisation Solution across its wider fleet, combining voyage planning, performance analytics, compliance management and operating data. Integrating machinery condition with wider vessel information gives shore teams more context around when equipment is loaded heavily, when maintenance can be accommodated and how service work interacts with voyage planning.
The operator forms part of TMS, which manages more than 140 vessels across LNG, LPG, tanker, dry bulk and container shipping. Bringing the two new carriers into the maintenance system from the beginning of their operating lives allows baseline data to be captured while machinery is still new and provides a consistent reference for later condition assessment.
Temperature, pressure and vibration behaviour recorded during early operation can then be compared with subsequent service, helping engineers separate gradual deterioration from normal differences between vessels or operating modes. The same data structure across several ships also makes it easier for shore teams to compare recurring issues and plan parts or technician support across the fleet.
The seven vessel agreement already using Dynamic Maintenance Planning and Expert Insight gives TMS Cardiff Gas an established process for applying those tools, while Al Thurayya and Al Majhoulah extend the same approach to newly delivered tonnage. Common maintenance methods can simplify training, service planning and spare parts management where machinery configurations overlap.
Any extension of maintenance intervals still remains bounded by component condition, manufacturer requirements and physical inspection. Earlier intervention is equally valuable when monitoring identifies deterioration before a scheduled overhaul, because the economic benefit comes from aligning maintenance with actual machinery condition rather than simply increasing the time between services.
The five year term will generate enough operating history to assess whether that combination of live data, remote engineering and flexible planning can maintain vessel availability while reducing unnecessary intervention. Performance will ultimately be visible in engine reliability, planned service execution and the frequency with which emerging faults are identified before they disrupt the vessels’ operating schedules.
