JANUARY 8, 2015 — Zwijndrecht, Belgium, headquartered dredging and hydraulic engineering specialist DEME reports the start of construction of its latest newbuild, the dual fueled multipurpose vessel Living Stone. The vessel is
The steel cutting ceremony took place at the shipyard December 4, with representatives from Shell and the shipbuilder in attendance.The new LNG bunker vessel will be based at the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and will load from the new LNG break bulk terminal currently under construction by the Gas Access to Europe terminal. Once ready, it will deliver to LNG-fueled vessels in northwest Europe. The vessel is also seagoing and, therefore, able to bunker customers at other locations.
Shell says the vessel will be “pioneering in design.” It will have a capacity to carry 6,500 cu. m of LNG fuel and will be highly efficient and maneuverable. Featuring an innovative transfer system and sub cooler unit, it will be able to load from large or small terminals and able to bunker a wide variety of customer vessels.
Finland’s Containerships Ltd Oy will be the launch customer for the vessel’s services, after signing an LNG supply agreement with Shell on November 24.
As we reported earlier, Containerships Ltd Oy is to charter the two 1,400 TEU LNG fueled containerships currently being built for Nordic Hamburg Group at China’s Yangzhou Guoyu Shipyard .
The vessels will receive LNG fuel from Shell at the port of Rotterdam, after the LNG bunker vessel becomes operational in mid-2017.”This is a significant landmark in bringing this innovative LNG bunker vessel with cutting-edge technology to reality,” said Dr Grahaeme Henderson, Vice President of Shell Shipping & Maritime.
“I am delighted to be working with STX on this project and Shell is proud to be leading in the development of LNG fuel in shipping.””The supply agreement between Shell and Containerships is another example of the marine LNG fuel supply chain coming together,” says Lauran Wetemans, Shell’s General Manager Downstream LNG. “Working together with customers like Containerships is critical to encourage the use of LNG as a fuel in the marine sector, and we’re committed to helping make the transition to LNG.”
LNG bunker vessel
NOVEMBER 19, 2015 — MAN Diesel & Turbo Sverige AB, a wholly owned subsidiary of MAN Diesel & Turbo SE (part of MAN and Volkswagen Group), is acquiring the marine fuel gas
The LNG-Ready Level 1 approval was issued, along with an approval in principle for the first vessel in a series built by Aker Philadelphia Shipyard and operated by Crowley Maritime Corporation, the recently delivered Ohio.
By achieving compliance with the ABS Guide for LNG Fuel Ready Vessels, Crowley has the option to convert the product tankers in the series to LNG fueled propulsion at a later date having already been granted a conceptual review.
“ABS has played a fundamental role in supporting the ambitions of the maritime industry as it moves to embrace the opportunity of LNG as fuel,” says ABS Chairman, President and CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki. “This milestone builds upon our work to provide owners with the guidance and support they need to move ahead with shipbuilding projects that allow them the flexibility to respond to changes over the lifetime of their vessels.”
ABS published the Guide for LNG Fuel Ready Vessels in 2014. The LNG-Ready endorsements allow shipowners and yards the flexibility to limit their initial investment while planning for the future conversion to dual fuel or gas-powered combustion engines. A well-thought-out plan can prepare shipowners to face ever-increasing stricter environmental regulations as well as help save time and money by considering basic gas-fueled ship requirements during the preliminary design and minimizing the potential changes during the future conversion.
“Crowley is proud to be the first company to actually receive this designation from ABS,” says Rob Grune, SVP and general manager petroleum services for Crowley. “As our business continues to shape itself to better meet the requirements of our customers, these vessels that stand ready and able to operate on a cleaner, alternative fuel source are our way of anticipating future demands.”
“Working with ABS and Crowley to build the first LNG-Ready product tanker has been a valuable process and has allowed the shipyard to deliver a vessel with the flexibility to evolve in the future” says Scott Clapham, SVP of Aker Philadelphia Shipyard.
Funding was provided through the federal program Mobility and Fuel Strategy which promotes the maritime use of LNG as an environmentally friendly fuel.
“For many years our shipping company has been committed to ‘Green Shipping’ – through the development and implementation of more efficient alternative propulsion systems,” said Gerd Wessels, Managing Owner of Wessels Reederei GmbH. “With the conversion to LNG we and our partners are showcasing our technical expertise and demonstrating practical environmental solutions for the merchant marine industry.”
Wessels Reederei has been investigating the conversion for the past two years, in collaboration with the main engine manufacturer, MAN Diesel & Turbo, and gas specialist TGE Marine Gas Engineering GmbH.
Delivered in 2011 by China’s Jiangdong Shipyard, Wes Amelie is a modern 1,000 TEU containership that operates in the North Sea and Baltic.
Wes Amelie has 23 sister ships, 16 of them structurally identical, and in selecting the vessel for conversion, special attention was paid to the scalability of the engineering services as well as the development costs, significantly reducing the costs for follow-up projects. continent.
One reason for the providing of funding for the conversion by BMVI is that it contributes to resolving the “chicken and the egg” problem of LNG fuel availability vs. demand by being a a demand-generating flagship project.
Wessels Reederei says that “due to the long delivery time for LNG tanks,” the conversion will begin in fourth quarter 2016, with full operational usage of LNG as fuel planned for early December 2016.
Crowley says the delivery is momentous not only for Crowley, but also for the industry because it is the first time a product tanker has been constructed with consideration for the future use of LNG as fuel. The remaining three ships in the series have planned deliveries through 2016.
The ships are based on a proven Hyundai Mipo Dockyards (HMD) design which incorporates numerous fuel efficiency features, flexible cargo capability, and meets the latest regulatory requirements. The vessel is 600 feet long and is capable of carrying crude oil or refined petroleum products.
Crowley’s Seattle-based, naval architecture and marine engineering subsidiary Jensen Maritime is providing construction management services for the product tankers. Jensen now has an on-site office and personnel at the Philadelphia shipyard to ensure strong working relationships with shipyard staff and a seamless construction and delivery program.
“We are excited to offer our customers cutting-edge technology available in these new tankers, which not only embraces operational excellence and top safety, but also offers the potential to be powered by environmentally friendly LNG in the future,” said Crowley’s Rob Grune, senior vice president and general manager, petroleum and chemical transportation. “Adding these new Jones Act tankers to our fleet allows us to continue providing our customers with diverse and modern equipment to transport their petroleum and chemical products in a safe and reliable manner.”
“We are proud to have Crowley as a repeat customer at the shipyard and to deliver another quality tanker to them. This vessel continues our strong history of building ships here in Philadelphia,” said Aker Philadelphia President and CEO Steinar Nerbovik.
AUGUST 20, 2015 – Classification society DNV GL has developed a new class notation for gas bunker vessels to ensures safe fuel transfer operations from one ship to another. Until now, says
AUGUST 3, 2015 — Caterpillar Marine reports that it is currently underway on a dual fuel engine retrofit conversion involving the 472 ft tanker Fure West, owned by Sweden’s Furetank Rederi A/B.
OCTOBER 20, 2014 — Houston headquartered LNG America has reached an agreement with Buffalo Marine Service, Inc. to cooperate on the design of an LNG bunker fuel network for the U. S.
