The success of the Stal-Laval AP Marine Steam Turbine design is now a matter of statistical record. In 1968 alone, orders were placed for units developing over 1,000,000 shp. This brings the total number of AP units in service and on order to 112, with an output exceeding 3-million horsepower.
The Swedish turbine manufacturer has made a major contribution to meet the demand for higher powers to propel larger tankers and faster containerships, with its standard single-plane powerplant utilizing planetary gearing. The Matson Navigation Company now has four such machines on order for new containerships, the first two of which will be installed in 1969 at the Bethlehem Steel Shipyard in Baltimore, Md. Considering all the turbine-powered containerships on order, Stal-Laval will deliver 42 percent of the propulsion plants.
Even more impressive is the large number of AP units scheduled for tankers, combination, and bulk carriers of the 100,000-dwt class and over. A check of the worldwide order book for ships in this category shows 32.2 percent of the steam-driven vessels will use Stal-Laval. The next closest turbine builder holds 21.3 percent of the available market, and the combined order book for the three leading Japanese turbine manufacturers only slightly exceeds that of Stal-Laval.