FueLNG, a joint venture consisting of Shell and Keppel Offshore & Marine, and Japan’s shipping giant NYK have completed what they say is the first LNG bunkering to an LNG-fueled PCTC in Singapore.
During the operation which took place on March 8, NYK’s third LNG-powered pure car and truck carrier, Jasmine Leader, received LNG fuel from the 7,500-cbm bunkering vessel, FueLNG Bellina.
NYK and FueLNG said in a statement that this marks a “significant milestone in NYK’s sustainability efforts and FueLNG’s mission to promote LNG as a marine fuel.”
“This achievement highlights FueLNG’s commitment to advancing the adoption of LNG as a marine fuel, and we are pleased to work with NYK to demonstrate the feasibility and safety of this technology for a large-scale PCTC in Singapore,” Tahir Faruqui, chairman of FueLNG and head of Shell downstream LNG, said.
“LNG is the lowest carbon fuel currently available at scale today and we will continue to collaborate with our customers to drive the growth of decarbonized LNG bunkering in the region,” he said.
Singapore’s first LNG bunkering ship, FueLNG Bellina, completed its first operation with a CMA CGM containership in March 2021.
Besides this vessel, Singapore’s FueLNG is expecting to take delivery of its second bunkering vessel in the second quarter of 2023.
Fleet of LNG-powered PCTCs
NYK took delivery of this LNG-powered PCTC, third such vessel in its fleet, from China Merchants Jinling Shipyard in Nanjing on January 31.
After that, the vessel arrived in Japan’s Hiroshima port, the first time for an LNG-powered PCTC to call at the Hiroshima port.
“We are delighted to have achieved the first PCTC LNG bunkering in Singapore through Jasmine Leader,” Yuji Nishijima, executive officer in charge of fuel procurement at NYK, said.
“This marks a significant step towards achieving our long-term target of net-zero emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) by 2050 for the NYK Group’s oceangoing businesses,” he said.
NYK is positioning LNG fuel as one of the bridge solutions until future zero-emission ships are realized, and plans to take delivery of a total of 20 new LNG-fueled car carriers by 2028.
The firm took delivery of Japan’s first LNG-powered PCTC, Sakura Leader, in October 2020, and its second PCTC, Plumeria Leader, in March last year.