Live from SMM: “Chicken and egg” dilemma for LNG-fueled ships

Marine Log's Paul Hutton (left) discusses the future of LNG as a marine fuel with Timo Koponen, VP of Flow and Gas Solutions at Wartsila

SEPTEMBER 10, 2016—Using Liquefied Natural Gas or LNG for short as a marine fuel hasn’t caught on as fast as many expected it to. Forecasts were that as many as 1,000 ships using LNG as a marine fuel would be sailing in the world fleet by next year. Right now, there are about 200. So why hasn’t LNG caught on? What are the hurdles?

“There are definitely logistical problems to solve in order to run ships on gas because you need to be sure that you can bunker the ships, and, of course, everyone around this value chain needs to make money,” said Timo Koponen, VP of Flow and Gas Solutions at Wärtsilä. Speaking to Marine Log at SMM 2016 in Hamburg, Germany, Koponen provided valuable insight on the future of fuelling ships with LNG.

To hear the podcast interview, click on the link below.