Spanish ferry operator Baleària announced it has started LNG retrofitting work for its ferry ‘Napoles’, the first of the company’s six vessels to be converted to run on LNG. The ship arrived Sunday at Gibdock shipyards in Gibraltar, where the modification of the engines and the installation of the LNG tank will be carried out. The works completion is scheduled on 15 February 2019.
As such, the two current engines of the ship (MAN9L48 / 60) will be upgraded to the version 9L51 / 60DF, dual motors to LNG from MAN Energy Solutions. With this change in fuel, the Naples ferry is expected to save 9,113.45 tons of CO2 and 871.37 NOx each year, and completely eliminate sulfur and particulate emissions (75.95 tons of SOx). The annual CO2 savings would be equivalent to the emissions of 6,000 cars.
The total investment for the LNG retrofitting amounts to 12 million euros, 20% of which will be paid through the CEF (Connecting Europe Facility) funds of the EU. The European Commission granted to the Baleària € 11,797,424 for the retrofit of five ships, highlighting that the project addresses ‘the objectives of Regulation 1315/2013 regarding efficiency, sustainability and cohesion, and contributes to the decarbonization of maritime transport‘.
In addition to Napoles, Baleària plans to change the engines of ferries Abel Matutes, Sicily, Bahama Mama and Martin i Soler, by the end of 2021, plus one more apart from the EU fund.
In line with its strategic commitment to LNG, the shipping company is also finalizing the construction of the first two smart ships with LNG engines that will sail in the Mediterranean (the Hypatia de Alejandría will start operating at the beginning of 2019 and the Marie Curie a few months later) and the first fast world ferry for passengers and cargo powered by dual LNG engines.
The company has been working on LNG-related projects since 2012. In addition to being a founding member of the Spanish Association of Natural Gas for Mobility (GASNAM), created in 2013, Baleària has strategic agreements with Naturgy and Rolls Royce and Wärtsilä, for the construction of engines. In addition, last year, it launched the first generator of electricity to LNG in the passenger ship, ‘Abel Matutes’.
