The port of Ferrol has hosted liquefied natural gas (LNG) refueling operations to ships that use this product as fuel, instead of fuel oil or diesel oil. The two operations were performed on February 23 and 24 respectively. They were carried out on the outer jetty, which is the dock of the inner dock where small and medium-sized cruise ships usually dock when they visit the city.
Mainly, the two ecological ferries,Samnøy and Huftarøy, that voyaged to the port, were newly build in the Turkish shipyard – Tersan.
They stopped in Ferrol for stocking, as they will continue their voyage to the Norwegian Fjords, where their base is.
[smlsubform prepend=”GET THE SAFETY4SEA IN YOUR INBOX!” showname=false emailtxt=”” emailholder=”Enter your email address” showsubmit=true submittxt=”Submit” jsthanks=false thankyou=”Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list”]
With a length of 134 meters and a width of 21m, both vessels have been designed to transport up to 545 people and up to 180 vehicles. Their propulsion systems enables them to operate in a more ecological way.
Specifically, Samnøy received about 110 cubic meters of fuel whereas the Huftarøy was supplied with 68 cubic meters, an overall of 178 cubic meters.
According to the port, there are a few ports in Spain that are capable of performing refuelling operations.
Furthermore, Ferros gains many benefits by having Reganosa terminal in its port.
In addition, Reganosa is making progress to convert Ferrol into a LNG hub of the Iberian northwest, thereby adapting its Mugardos facilities to the new challenge of small-scale liquefied natural gas traffic. The Parliament of Galicia itself has fully supported this project as an strategic step forward.
As José Manuel Vilariño, president of the Port Authority, reported
Ferrol is very well positioned to attract customers of this kind of supply operations. It has LNG available in its port and is located in a strategic location, at the gates of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. These areas have been declared ECA zones and have their gas emission rates limited by maritime transport.
Finally, the president also noted that due to increased traffic in the area, LNG will benefit the city.
