The adoption of LNG as an alternative fuel and shore power is gaining traction as these measures could help ships meet the first FuelEU Maritime target from next year, reports Engine.
New regulations
The EU’s FuelEU Maritime regulation will come into effect in less than 200 days. It sets out targets for a 2% reduction in the greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity of the energy used onboard vessels from 2025, 6% from 2030, 14.5% from 2035, 31% from 2040, 62% from 2045 and 80% from 2050, compared to 2020 levels. Shipping companies with ships trading in the EU will have to comply with these gradually rising targets to avoid paying hefty penalties.
“In the initial years, meeting the FuelEU Maritime targets may not require large volumes of e-fuels,” Transport & Environment wrote in a report last month. It estimates LNG, biofuels, and shore power to make up “the lion’s share of alternative fuel demand in this decade”. Now an increasing focus on LNG and shore power provides some support for T&E’s prediction.
DNV data shows that there are 547 LNG-capable vessels in operation and another 505 on order for delivery towards 2028. Some suppliers like Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Clean Energy are ramping up production capacity to meet this future wave of LNG bunker demand.
ADNOC is developing an LNG plant with a total export capacity of 9.6 million mt/year in Al Ruwais Industrial City in UAE’s Abu Dhabi. The first shipments from the plant are scheduled for 2028. The project aims to facilitate shipping’s access to LNG as a bunker fuel, Abdulkareem Al Masabi, chief executive of ADNOC Logistics and Services said.
US-based LNG supplier Clean Energy has completed the construction of its third production train at its liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant located in Boron, California in the US, This has increased the plant’s LNG production capacity to 270,000 gallons/day and is intended to meet bunkering demand for Pasha Hawaii’s three LNG-fuelled container ships.
The Port of Rotterdam Authority and multiple partners are conducting feasibility studies into shore power at four of the port’s terminals. The studies cover technical analysis, environmental and social cost-benefits, tendering, and permitting procedures related to setting up shore power facilities at these locations.
The European Commission has approved €570 million ($611.60 million) in Italian state aid to incentivize ships to use onshore power. Italy’s scheme will allow ship operators to save up to 100% of “general system charges” when connected to shore power in Italian ports. General system charges are additional costs or levies that are included in the electricity price paid by consumers.
In other news, design, and engineering consultancy, Houlder unveiled a methanol bunkering vessel design for the SPINE maritime project. The 10,000 cm-capacity methanol bunkering vessel design features a semi-automated crane system, that can allow it to supply methanol to multiple vessel segments including cruise liners and large container vessels.
Heerema Marine Contractors will conduct a five-week trial of an onboard carbon capture system (CCS) on its LNG-fuelled vessel. The trial will involve testing the carbon capture rate and liquefication capacity of the system on the vessel. It will also include offloading CO2 and transporting it to a permanent storage facility.
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Source: Engine
