Alternative Fuels

Titan acquires two small scale LNG carriers for bunkering capability retrofit

Vessels will be retrofitted to ensure suitable LNG bunkering capabilities, enabling them to both transport and bunker LNG, LBM, and in the longer-term e-LNG.

Published

2 years ago

February 1, 2023

Admin

Independent supplier of low and zero-emission bunker fuels Titan on Tuesday (31 January) said it has acquired two small scale LNG carriers – Seapeak Unikum and Seapeak Vision – from Seapeak, the Canadian gas transportation company formerly known as Teekay LNG Partners.

The vessels will be retrofitted to ensure suitable LNG bunkering capabilities, enabling them to both transport and bunker LNG, liquefied biomethane (LBM), and in the longer-term hydrogen derived e-methane (e-LNG).

Both sister vessels have a cargo capacity of 12,000 cubic metres (cbm) and are 152m in length by 19.8m in width. The two vessels will join Titan’s fleet in March this year. They will operate in the Mediterranean and Northwestern Europe and will cater for increased demand for LNG and LBM (bio-LNG) in these regions.

The vessels and the retrofit are financed by Sole Shipping Group through a long-term bareboat charter leasing structure. Sole Shipping Group is a major European provider of financial leasing structures. Titan was advised on this transaction by Endegeest Consulting BV.

Titan’s expanding fleet already includes a mix of owned and chartered vessels. Furthermore, Titan has an ambitious newbuild program consisting of Titan Krios and Titan Hyperion designs. The two new additions to the fleet allow Titan to deliver fuel to a wider range of LNG-powered vessels, including all container ships. Before operations begin, the LNG carriers will be retrofitted to improve LNG bunkering capabilities and to meet Titan’s quality standards. After the upgrades, the vessels will be able to load at all major LNG terminals and perform ship-to-ship bunkering and loading operations.

Thanks to its cargo conditioning capabilities, the vessels are also capable of doing more complex projects, including gas-up cool-down operations and commissioning parcels. On top of this, the cargo tanks are made of stainless steel, making them compatible with propylene, ethylene, and ammonia.

Douwe de Jong, fleet development director at Titan, said: “Retrofitting these ships so that they can trade and bunker LNG, LBM, and in the longer-term hydrogen derived e-methane, offers Titan even more flexibility in its clean fuel operations. The team is currently specifying the upgrades and finding a suitable shipyard for the retrofit work.”

Niels den Nijs, owner and CEO of Titan, said: “A Solid double digit EBITDA in 2022 has allowed us to make this additional investment in our fleet. This decision aligns with Titan's ambitious growth strategy in Europe and the Mediterranean. We look forward to continuing to work with our partners, like Sole Shipping Group, to expand our fleet to support our LNG and LBM distribution targets and serve our customer’s long-term demand.”

The announcement of this vessel acquisition follows the recent news from Robert Habeck, vice chancellor of Germany and a member of the German green party, that Germany has granted a total of EUR 62 million to a partnership of three companies, including Titan, for the construction of the Titan Krios new build LNG bunker vessels.

Photo credit: Titan
Published: 31 January, 2023

Biofuel

Singapore: GCMD introduces new technique for FAME bio bunker fuel fingerprinting

Fingerprinting identifies feedstock origins of FAME-based biofuels used in shipping industry; can be used as a potential tool to detect fraud in marine fuel supply chains and ensure biofuel authenticity.

Published

8 hours ago

December 2, 2024

Admin

Singapore: GCMD introduces new technique for FAME bio bunker fuel fingerprinting

The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) on Monday (2 December) released its latest report, presenting a new technique that creates a fingerprint for Fatty Acid Methyl Esters(FAME) bio bunker fuels.

This fingerprint identifies the feedstock origins of the FAME-based biofuels used in the shipping industry.

GCMD said FAME fingerprinting is needed as the shipping sector is increasingly using biofuels, such as FAME, to reduce its GHG emissions. With that, concerns have arisen regarding the legitimacy of biofuels and whether they are truly sustainable.

Industry bodies are seeing a rising number of cases mislabelling biofuels purported to be made from recycled oils and fats, while suspicions persist that they might be produced from cheaper and less sustainable virgin oils.

“To address these concerns, FAME fingerprinting can be used as a potential tool to detect fraud in marine fuel supply chains and ensure biofuel authenticity. By providing a physical validation method that complements existing certification schemes, FAME fingerprinting can help justify the green premium with genuine environmental benefits and safeguard the integrity of marine fuels supply chain,” GCMD said.

FAME fingerprinting is based on the principle that the fatty acid profile of FAME is unique to its feedstock and can be preserved during feedstock transesterification to produce FAME. The "fingerprint" can then be compared against a database of known fatty acid profiles to identify the feedstock origin.

GCMD worked with VPS who modified existing fuel testing methods to carry out sample analyses using a gas chromatograph with flame-ionisation detection, an instrument commonly found in fuel test laboratories.

The analysis takes about an hour, comparable to the turnaround time for current marine fuel quality testing in the supply chain.

“We have tested this method on a variety of FAME samples from different suppliers, including virgin oils, used cooking oils, palm oil mill effluent, beef tallow and food waste and were able to identify the feedstock origins for each sample,” GCMD added.

Manifold Times previously reported Captain Rahul Choudhuri, President, Strategic Partnerships at marine fuels testing company VPS, forecasting the use of finger printing technology today will likely establish a blueprint of how future alternative bunker fuels’ feedstocks are authenticated.

Captain Choudhuri said this when he gave an update of VPS’ biofuels finger printing trials with GCMD.

Note: The full report, titled ‘Rapid forensic analysis of FAME-based biofuels: Potential use of its fingerprint as a fraud detection tool’, can be downloaded here.

Photo credit: Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation
Published: 2 December, 2024

Methanol

PLAGEN to produce and supply green methanol bunker fuel with Latvia plant

Korean firm’s MoU with AE Risinājumi will see construction of Latvia’s first commercial-scale green methanol production plant, which will supply green methanol to ships in EU’s maritime fleet.

Published

9 hours ago

December 2, 2024

Admin

PLAGEN to produce and supply green methanol bunker fuel with Latvia plant

South Korean clean energy firm PLAGEN on Friday (29 November) signed an MOU with Latvian company, AE Risinājumi, for the production of green methanol in Latvia at the “2024 Latvia-Korea Business Forum” hosted by the President of Latvia.

The agreement will result in the construction of Latvia's first commercial-scale green methanol production plant, which will supply green methanol to ships in the EU's maritime fleet, contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from maritime transportation.

PLAGEN's MoU aims to produce 20,000 metric tonnes (mt) of green methanol per year and will begin feasibility studies in the first half of 2025, and full-scale production will begin in 2028.

With 53% of Latvia's land area covered by forests, timber production and wood processing make a significant contribution to Latvia’s economic production, which generates a large amount of forest residues and wood wastes. In addition, Latvia also has an abundance and low price of renewable electricity from wind power.

Latvia is one of the most competitive countries in the European Union, as it can produce clean methanol at a competitive price by using abundant wood waste as a raw material and renewable electricity from cheap wind power.

The use of abundant forest residues and wood wastes as a feedstock and cheap renewable electricity from wind power makes it possible to produce green methanol with a competitive price, making Latvia is one of the most competitive countries in the EU.

In the European Union, the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) will come into effect in 2025, requiring shipping companies to purchase carbon credits for their greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition, the EU is implementing FuelEU Maritime, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2% below the 2020 average by 2025 and 80% by 2050. This is expected to result in an energy transition to green methanol.

In July 2023, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted a revised strategy that calls for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships to net-zero by or around 2050, and plans to introduce full-scale regulations from 2027, and shipping companies have begun ordering methanol-powered ships fueled by green methanol, a carbon-neutral fuel.

“We expect to start producing green methanol in Latvia in 2028, which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from EU maritime transport vessels and contribute significantly to the revitalization of the Latvian economy and national energy security,” said John Kyung, CEO of PLAGEN.

In November 2024, PLAGEN completed the purchase of an industrial complex and received a government permit for the construction of the country's first green methanol plant in Dongjeom Industrial Complex in Taebaek City, Gangwon-do.

The project, which will produce 10,000 mt per year, is scheduled to begin construction in the first half of 2025 and begin production in the second half of 2027.

Photo credit: PLAGEN
Published: 2 December, 2024

LNG Bunkering

Molgas commences LNG bunkering operations in United Kingdom

Firm successfully completed the first LNG bunkering of “MV Glen Sannox” since the ship was handed over to CalMac Ferries Limited last week.

Published

9 hours ago

December 2, 2024

Admin

Molgas commences LNG bunkering operations in United Kingdom

Molgas Group on Friday (29 November) said it successfully completed the first LNG bunkering of the MV Glen Sannox since the ship was handed over to CalMac Ferries Limited last week, marking its entry into the United Kingdom.

“We would like to thank CalMac Ferries Limited and Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Limited for their trust and long-term collaboration,” the firm said in a social media post.

“This project not only represents a significant step forward in the adoption of cleaner fuels in the maritime industry of the United Kingdom but also for the expansion of our Pan-European Supply Network for the Marine Segment to receive (bio)LNG via various supply assets across multiple countries and ports.”

Photo credit: Molgas Group
Published: 2 December, 2024