Galveston LNG Bunker Port, LLC (GLBP) on Thursday (12 September) said it has entered into a Gas Supply Agreement (GSA) regarding the delivery of natural gas to the GLBP terminal in Texas City, Texas.

Texas-based GLBP has laid the foundation for a partnership with Energy Transfer’s Houston Pipeline Company (HPL) for the supply of natural gas to the proposed Galveston LNG Bunker Port project, which will be the first dedicated LNG bunker terminal in the US Gulf Coast.

The two companies have executed agreements, which outline the gas supply and additional pipeline facilities required for the delivery of natural gas to the GLBP facility. 

This gas supply agreement supports GLBP in providing LNG marine fuel to customers in the Galveston Bay Port complex, including the ports of Houston, Galveston and Texas City, as well as Galveston Offshore Lightering Areas, on a long-term basis.

“Securing gas supply is essential to the successful delivery of LNG as a fuel in Galveston Bay, and working with an experienced natural gas pipeline operator like HPL will ensure the safe operation and delivery of supply to the facility,” said Jonathan Cook on behalf of GLBP. 

“We are proud of the relationship we have with HPL and are excited about the opportunities we have to work closely with them in supporting the strengthening of US energy infrastructure, and the maritime industries decarbonization journey.”

Among the industries adopting LNG as a marine fuel, the cruise ship, Roll on-Roll off (RoRo) car carriers, and containerized shipping industries are particularly notable, both due to their significant bunker requirements as well as their prominent involvement in the Galveston Bay port complex.

Currently, cruise ships already make approximately 380 port calls each year at the three existing cruise terminals in Galveston, with a 4th terminal recently announced and starting construction. 

In addition, there are over 10,000 deep draft vessel calls annually in the Galveston Bay port complex. GLBP and HPL will play a major role in providing affordable, clean marine fuel to these essential maritime sectors.

The Galveston LNG Bunker Port is currently under development toward a Final Investment Decision (FID). The project is expected to be operational by the first half of 2027.

Related: Galveston LNG Bunker Port joins SEA-LNG coalition
Related: Galveston LNG Bunker Port secures site in Texas for proposed LNG bunkering facility
Related: Seapath, Pilot LNG launch JV to develop dedicated LNG bunkering facility in US Gulf Coast
Related: Houston: Pilot LNG announces regulatory filing for Galveston LNG Bunker Port
Related: Pilot LNG submits documentation to USCG for proposed LNG Bunker Port at Galveston
Related: Pilot LNG awards Galveston LNG Bunker Port FEED contract to Wison Offshore & Marine

 

Photo credit: Galveston LNG Bunker Port
Published: 13 September, 2024

John A. Bassadone, founder and CEO of independent marine fuel supplier Peninsula on Wednesday (11 September) officially launched his shipping venture, Hercules Tanker Management (HTM). 

HTM operates as an independent ship owner, active in chartering tonnage and commercial management. The company also facilitates Peninsula’s cargo flows and physical supply operations.

Since 2012, Peninsula has expanded its supply chain, focusing on logistics control. Initially using product tankers for bunkering, it later incorporated larger tankers as it grew in various cargo markets. Leveraging its fleet operations experience, Peninsula established HTM in 2022, soft launching in late 2023. 

Now an active freight trader in its own right, HTM initially emanated from Peninsula’s growth in cargo markets, which necessitated the 2022 creation of a dedicated chartering desk. This desk remains the hub of HTM, with both companies maintaining close ties as shipping and energy partners.

Tonnage, previously owned and operated by Peninsula, has moved to HTM but will continue to be utilised by Bassadone’s marine energy business. 

HTM’s combined newbuild plans and gradual fleet renewal assist Peninsula with its sustainability goals. These have been further enhanced by two purpose-built LNG bunkering vessels. The Levante LNG is currently actively supplying LNG across the Western Mediterranean, and a further vessel, with an option for another, is under construction by Hyundai Mipo shipyard in South Korea.

Bassadone, said: “After almost three decades in the marine energy industry and with steady and growing cargo flow, it is the right time to launch a specialist tanker company with a growth appetite and long-term focus.”

“The experience and knowledge from operating vessels and running cargo has allowed us to accelerate this process.  We own a diverse range of tankers, allowing us to actively participate in global freight markets, flexibly servicing customer needs. HTM will increasingly operate larger tanker sizes, partly as Peninsula seeks increased economies of scale across its worldwide supply chain, but also as HTM further builds its own trading book.

“These are genuinely exciting times and I’m keen to carefully, further build the Hercules fleet, with the right assets, bringing both operational flexibility and improved environmental efficiency.  HTM is already well positioned in the market and can now forge ahead with plans to further increase tonnage under management.”

HTM Overview:

• 4 x owned Handymaxes (2 of which are signed MOAs)
• 3 x chartered in Handymaxes
• 1 x owned MR
• 1 x owned Panamax
• 1 x owned LNG bunker vessel (plus 1 under construction + option for an additional vessel)
• 11 x owned product/chemical tankers between 5k and 22k DWT
• 18 x chartered in product/chemical tankers between 5k and 20k DWT
• 1 x product/chemical tanker MOA signed for purchase
• 4 x product/chemical tanker (2 x methanol ready) under construction

Total: 44 Vessels (owned/chartered in/MOAs signed)

Related: Peninsula delivers its first LNG bunker fuel supply in Gibraltar through “Levante LNG”

 

Photo credit: Peninsula
Published: 12 September, 2024

Greek shipping companies are set to face a total bill of over EUR 175 million in penalties incurred under FuelEU Maritime after it takes effect next year but can also capitalise on the use of alternative bunker fuels both to curb their financial exposure and generate compliance surpluses, according to Hamburg-based technology platform OceanScore on Tuesday (10 September). 

The maritime solutions and data firm has calculated the prospective FuelEU exposure for over 370 Greek-registered companies based on the average GHG intensity of their past voyages.

Based on these calculations, OceanScore has determined the crude tanker, RoPax, bulker and containership segments would be hardest hit, with tankers accounting for EUR 55 million (32%) and RoPax EUR 44m (25%) of potential penalties.

It has determined the top three shipping companies would be looking at a combined penalty of EUR 25m, with the largest company facing the highest overall penalty of EUR 11.75 million and an average per-vessel penalty of EUR 309,200, versus an average per-vessel penalty across all companies of EUR 84,200. The second and third largest players would each have total penalties of around EUR 6.5m.

Investments needed to offset compliance deficit

The overall Greek fleet of 2100 vessels would be left with a negative compliance balance, or deficit, of 71,666 tonnes of VLSFOe, according to OceanScore.

This is derived from a Greek fleet-wide average GHG intensity of 90.81g of CO2e per megajoule (MJ) of energy versus the initial FuelEU hurdle rate of 89.3g CO2e/MJ - a 2% reduction on the 2022 baseline of 91.16g CO2e/MJ that is the initial target from 2025-30 under the regulation.

However, OceanScore’s co-Managing Director Ralf Garrn, said: “This should only be considered the starting point for Greek shipping and not the final scenario as much will depend on how companies take advantage of biofuels, low-carbon technologies and the FuelEU pooling mechanism to minimise their exposure.

“Vessels with a very high penalty structure will also gain the greatest beneficial effects from fuel switching with biofuels to reduce their penalties and can even convert these into opportunities by creating compliance surpluses that can generate revenue through pooling.”

LNG well-positioned to benefit

He highlighted Greek LNG shipping operators as being especially well-positioned to capitalise on FuelEU due to a high compliance surplus that makes pooling opportunities attractive, given the use of LNG as fuel can cut emissions by around 25%. For example, two of the country’s largest LNG operators have respective surpluses of 82.1 tonnes and 45.2 tonnes of VLSFOe.

Garrn said the use of widely compatible biofuels probably represents the easiest option for most shipping companies to cut their carbon footprint in the short term. However, these are more expensive - at around EUR 1300 per tonne of VLSFOe - than fossil fuels, while they also have a lower calorific value so a higher volume is required.

He explained that switching to biofuels to curb CO2 emissions would result both in savings on the current FuelEU penalty of EUR 2400 per tonne of VLSFOe as well as reduced costs under the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) due to the need to buy fewer EU Allowances (EUAs), or carbon credits.

OceanScore has calculated that Greek shipping presently has a requirement to purchase nearly 8.23m EUAs to meet its EU ETS liabilities, which would equate to EUR 543 million based on the current carbon price of EUR 66 per tonne of CO2.

High potential for cost savings

The company cites the example of a containership that could achieve a total net saving of EUR 1.3m versus the cost of paying FuelEU penalties by replacing HFO with rapeseed-based biofuel costing EUR 1200 per tonne. It estimates this would give a beneficial financial impact of EUR 241 per tonne in FuelEU penalty savings and EUR 55 per tonne in EU ETS savings.

Furthermore, this could generate a compliance surplus of 973 tonnes of VLSFOe by reducing GHG intensity to 82.44g CO2e/MJ, which could be pooled externally to earn EUR 2.3 million in revenue or used to offset 43,000 tonnes of under-compliance in the internal fleet. 

OceanScore has now launched its FuelEU Planner - the first in a suite of solutions set to be rolled out over the next year - that enables shipping companies to simulate different operational and investment scenarios to assess their commercial impact in relation to FuelEU compliance.

“This tool is designed to facilitate optimal decision-making by providing visibility on potential cost-saving opportunities as an alternative to simply paying penalties as we help the industry navigate the significant complexity of this regulation,” Garrn concluded. 

 

Photo credit: OceanScore
Published: 12 September, 2024