“There are a couple of big drivers to the introduction of LNG fuelled vessels – environment and economic, they’re all aligned very nicely,” Tony Regan, principal consultant for Tri-Zen, told a conference held by DNB Markets in Singapore on Wednesday.
On the environmental side the introduction of emission control areas (ECAs) has been driver. Regan noted that the first ECA in the North Sea stimulated the introduction of LNG as marine fuel, particularly in Norway. However, the big game changer was the introduction an ECA in US waters in 2012, which then combines with the 0.1% sulphur restriction that will apply to ECAs from 2015, which he said effectively means “goodbye fuel oil”.
The alternative is to use diesel, which he said was much more expensive in Europe and North America than LNG. “Do I pay 60% - 70% more or move to LNG? The answer is move to LNG.” Regan added that scrubbers were not the answer.
However, he described Asia as “a bit of a laggard” with ECAs much talked about but very little action to date.
Although confident about the introduction of LNG as marine fuel, he noted the current 100 vessels currently either in operation or order, was “a bit less” than he might have expected ahead of the 2015 deadline for 0.1% sulphur fuel in ECAs. He noted though the first orders for LNG fuelled containerships and long haul vessels.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Seatrade, a trading name of Informa Markets (UK) Limited. Add Seatrade Maritime News to your Google News feed.
