Tag: LNG

The world's first LNG driven tugboat (as claimed by port of Zeebrugge), the M/T Borgoy arrived in the port of Zeebrugge for a bunkering operation. The ‘truck to ship' bunkering operation was the first to be performed in the Flemish coastal port. The maritime sector is confronted with strict emission regulations, which results in an interest for LNG as a maritime fuel. This tug boat emits nearly 30 percent less CO2 and up to 90 percent less NOx and fine dust than conventionally-powered tugs. M/T Borgoy is the first of two identical tug boats ordered by the Norwegian BUBE (Buksér og Berging AS). The tug has left the Sanmar shipyard in Turkey and has set sail for Karsto in Norway to begin her long term operational contract for Statoil. To fuel up on LNG for her maiden trip, the ship makes halt in the port of Zeebrugge. The LNG fuelling operation was executed ‘Truck to Ship'. An LNG-filled trailer is then positioned alongside the quay and is connected with the ships fuel tank. For the port of Zeebrugge, this is an absolute premier. Joachim Coens, CEO Port of Zeebrugge: "This bunkering operation is of the greatest importance to the port ...

Swedish shipping company Erik Thun A.B. has granted Shipyard Ferus Smit the order for building an LNG powered cargo vessel, with 2 more units on option. The first vessel will be delivered in autumn 2015 from the yard in Westerbroek, Groningen. The Thun shipping company has a strong market position in Northern Europe and the Baltic area. To further strengthen her position as ‘green' fleet with the new SECA rules coming into force in 2015 for the Baltic, Thun believes LNG will be the way forward. For Ferus Smit shipyards it is a great challenge to build the first LNG powered short-sea dry cargo vessels to date. Many concepts and studies have been above the market already, but it will be down to the long-term cooperation between yard and ship owner to work out  viable solutions that can be profitable in daily use. The ships will be bulk oriented general cargo vessels sizing 5800 DWT, with the option to convert them into self-unloaders. They will be of iceclass 1A and suitable for year-round Baltic service. The vessels will be equipped with a Wartsila Dual fuel main engine and a pressurized LNG tank enabling round trips of abt. 2 weeks. Classification ...

Pivotal LNG, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of AGL Resources and WesPac Midstream LLC announced they have been selected by TOTE, Inc. to provide liquefied natural gas to fuel TOTE's two new state-of-the-art container ships in Jacksonville, Fla. TOTE's new dual fuel LNG container ships are expected to be delivered to the port in Jacksonville in late 2015 and early 2016. To move forward on this project, Pivotal LNG, Inc., WesPac and TOTE have signed a letter of intent and are working toward definitive agreements. While there is still work to be done, Pivotal LNG, Inc. and WesPac plan to work together on this project to create a joint venture which will develop a new liquefied natural gas plant in Jacksonville, Fla. "We are very pleased to have been selected by TOTE to supply their two new LNG container ships. We look forward to working with TOTE and WesPac to develop opportunities that help meet the growing demand for LNG as an alternative fuel solution in the Jacksonville area," said Stephen Cittadine, president of Pivotal LNG. AGL Resources, the parent company of Pivotal LNG, has more than four decades of experience in providing customers with clean, abundant, cost-effective LNG fuel. ...

In order to tap into Colombian stranded gas reserves, Pacific Rubiales Energy Corporation and EXMAR nv have partnered in a project to build and operate a floating LNG liquefaction, and storage unit, the Caribbean FLNG, which will be stationed at a jetty several kilometers off the Caribbean coast of Colombia for at least 15 years. In order to protect the hull of the Caribbean FLNG, keep it clean and facilitate class inspections over that time period without recourse to drydock and without causing harm to the local marine environment, EXMAR has applied an innovative glassflake, non-toxic, longlasting hull coating system, Ecospeed, on the vessel’s hull. EXMAR is a pioneer in offshore processing and storage solutions and this unit, the first of its kind ever to be built, presages a breakthrough in stranded gas monetization for the offshore oil and gas industry which promises to have worldwide application. LNG and stranded gas For economic and environmental reasons, global demand for natural gas as an alternative source of energy to traditional fossil fuels such as oil and coal has surged in recent years. Natural gas burns cleaner and therefore is responsible for reduced noxious emissions. If it can be produced and transported ...

DNV GL has released a position paper on the future alternative fuel mix for global shipping. While LNG is expected to be an early success, the picture becomes more diversified with time, as more than 20 per cent of shipping could adopt hybrid propulsion solutions, featuring batteries or other energy storage technologies. The main drivers for the use of alternative fuels are the desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the need to meet upcoming air pollution requirements. “The global merchant fleet currently consumes around 330 million tonnes of fuel annually, 80-85 per cent of which is residual fuel with high sulphur content,” says Christos Chryssakis, senior researcher DNV GL and position paper project manager. “Shipping must change, and we must contribute technical measures, operational measures and alternative fuels to meet the environmental challenges we are tackling.” Electrification Technology to Come Over the next four decades, it is likely that the energy mix will be characterised by a high degree of diversification, says Chryssakis. "LNG has the potential to become the fuel of choice for all shipping segments provided the infrastructure is in place, while liquid biofuels could gradually also replace oil-based fuels." Electricity from the grid is most likely ...

TGE Marine Gas Engineering signed the contracts for one firm and three optional vessels for the design and supply of the cargo handling systems, high pressure fuel gas systems including LNG fuel tanks and tank material packages for the next generation of ethane/ethylene carriers of 35,000 m3 capacity with Jiangnan Shipyard Group. The ships were ordered by Navigator Gas Ltd. and shall be delivered in 2016. In close co-operation with owner and shipyard, TGE Marine has participated in the development of this new eco design based on slow speed dual fuel main engines. The ship is a 3 tank version with a maximum individual tank size of more than 12,000 m3 and will consequently be the world's largest type C tank based gas carrier. TGE Marine is currently developing conceptual designs for even larger ethane carriers. "We are delighted to have, once again, successfully worked together with Jiangnan Shipyard and Navigator Gas on this series of new ships, which may create a new type of commodity trade for large quantities of ethane from the US to Europe or Asia" commented Manfred Küver, TGE Marine's CEO. "TGE Marine and Jiangnan Shipyard have worked on joint projects for more than 25 years ...

INTTRA, a multi-carrier e-commerce network for ocean shipping, announced a strategic agreement with CSAV Group, to make INTTRA a preferred e-shipping platform for CSAV Group's customer base of shippers and freight forwarders. This enables CSAV Group to meet customer requests for easy access to INTTRA's collaborative e-commerce network-which handles 21 percent of global ocean container trade-and improve the customer experiences and operational efficiencies gained by overseeing shipments using a standardized, multi-carrier platform. "By making INTTRA's e-commerce capabilities and network available to our customers, we are accelerating execution on our top priority-to deliver the highest level of service by using the best technologies available," said Andres Kulka, commercial senior vice president, CSAV Group. "INTTRA has the innovative solutions and industry experience necessary to help us bring the benefits of e-shipping and automation to our global customer base. This agreement is a key element of our growth strategy for the digital age." Today's announcement expands upon a previous agreement with CSAV Group, which used INTTRA's Ocean IQ data quality program for a complete system analysis. This helped CSAV Group identify and diagnose high priority system integration opportunities, improve information quality and drive new efficiencies throughout their organization. CSAV Group serves customers within ...

GasLog Ltd. announced an agreement with Methane Services Ltd., an affiliate of BG Group, to purchase three LNG carriers from MSL's fleet and to charter those ships back to MSL for six-year initial terms. MSL also will have options to extend the term of the time charters for two of the ships for a period of either three or five years at its election. The ships to be acquired will be nominated by MSL from an agreed group of six sister ships built in 2006 and 2007. GasLog supervised the construction of all six ships and has provided technical management for the ships since delivery. The aggregate cost to GasLog for the ships is expected to be approximately $468 million. Each LNG carrier to be acquired is modern, steam powered and has a capacity of 145,000 cubic meters. The Company estimates that upon their acquisition, these ships will represent approximately $426.3 million of incremental contracted revenue over their initial charter terms and add over $50.0 million per annum to GasLog's EBITDA1. Paul Wogan, CEO of GasLog, commented that "we are very pleased that we will be able to add these LNG carriers to our fleet as it again demonstrates our ...

The European Union will support with just over €1 million from the TEN-T Programme a series of studies to analyse the potential introduction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure in Spain and France. The studies, selected for funding under the 2012 TEN-T Multi-Annual Call, aim at determining the feasibility of implementing LNG bunkering facilities in the Port of Roscoff (northwest France) and the Port of Santander (northern Spain). They take into account the conformity of the infrastructure and equipment with the standards for risk prevention, environmental protection and the eventual constraints, revealed by the impact assessments and the public inquiries. LNG is rapidly emerging as a more environmentally friendly fuel for the maritime sector and its uptake is encouraged by the European Union. The European market for LNG for maritime transport is presently limited and infrastructure to cater for the small-scale supply of LNG is almost non-existent. The findings of these studies will be an essential decision making tool for: a) the ferry operator, to start the construction and the retrofit of LNG vessels b) port authorities in Roscoff and Santander that will be able to plan the design and the implementation of LNG bunkering stations c) the authorities in ...

A groundswell of momentum is building in the US around the use of LNG as ship fuel as owners, ports and regulators, have realised the benefits of this emerging technology. "It used to be said that LNG was a chicken or egg problem," says Paal Johansen, who leads DNV GL's maritime business in the Americas, "but now it is looking as if we not only have the egg, but the chicken and the henhouse too. As we see this trend grow, DNV GL is working to ensure that owners can be confident that not only the technology their vessels need has been vetted, but that the supporting infrastructure and operational practices are well established." A combination of rising bunker prices, environmental awareness and regulations, growth in production and developing infrastructure have served as the tipping point which could see LNG establish itself as a viable primary fuel for commercial vessels in the US. "The US has tremendous natural gas resources, especially from unconventional sources, and production hit the highest levels on record in August 2013. Utilising this resource addresses the key concern in shipping - the rising cost of fuel oil, while at the same time reducing the industry's impact ...