LNG

Crowley Maritime, a leading US shipping line in Central America and the Caribbean, has inaugurated an LNG unloading terminal and supply depot in Peñuelas for small-scale users in the US territory of Puerto Rico where clean energy needs are increasing.

Crowley Maritime Corp. and subsidiary Jensen Maritime, the company’s Seattle-based naval architecture and marine engineering firm, have been honored with awards for the LNG-powered ships engaged in the US-Puerto Rico trade route.

Crowley Maritime Corp., one of the US shipping lines pioneering vessels with LNG fuel capability, marked its commitment to the Florida-Puerto Rico trade route with a ceremony at San Juan port in the US Caribbean territory.

Crowley said it had christened the US-flag combination container-roll on-roll off ship “Taino” in San Juan, where the company’s investments have ushered in a new era of world-class supply chain services.

Clara Crowley, daughter of Chairman and Chief Executive Tom Crowley and board member Christine Crowley, served as the ship’s sponsor and broke the ceremonial bottle of champagne on the bow of “Taino” at the company’s Isla Grande Terminal in the presence of several hundred employees, customers and officials.

It was the first time a container ship had been christened in San Juan in recent memory.

“We are thrilled to christen this magnificent new ship here with our employees, customers and people of Puerto Rico, whom she will serve for many years to come,” said CEO Tom Crowley.

“The ‘Taino’ vessel is a source of pride for us all and in particular the men and women who built and or crew her, many of whom are Puerto Rican,” added Crowley.

The vessel is among the first US-flagged vessels to have LNG capability, like its sister “El Coqui”, which entered service in 2018. Both have dual-fuel engines to operate with LNG and conventional fuel.

Both ships were constructed at the VT Halter Marine’s shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi.

Crowley has also made significant investments in terminals and related infrastructure on the mainland and in Puerto Rico.

At Isla Grande, the company added a new, 900-foot pier and three ship-to-shore gantry cranes, the first newly constructed cranes for San Juan Harbor in more than 50 years.

The company also implemented a new terminal operating system and added container staging areas and handling equipment for both refrigerated and dry cargo.

“This major investment, which is resulting in jobs, a positive economic impact, a cleaner environment and world-class supply chain services for Puerto Rico shippers, would not have been possible without the Jones Act,” said Crowley.

The Jones Act is a federal law that regulates maritime commerce in the United States.

It requires goods shipped between US ports to be transported on ships that are built, owned and operated by United States citizens or permanent residents.

“Also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, the law is vitally important to maintaining a strong US maritime capability and national defense,” said Crowley.

“While the act ensures that we have a robust shipbuilding capability and skilled merchant mariners in the US essential to our national defense, it has also created a commercial shipping market between the mainland and Puerto Rico that is highly competitive, customized and dedicated,” said the CEO.

“We should be strengthening this critically important maritime law, not tearing it down as some special interest groups espousing highly inaccurate and misleading information would like to do,” he stated.

Domestic carriers get no direct subsidies, but their routes between US ports are protected from foreign competition.

Many countries have so-called "cabotage” laws restricting who may provide transport services within their borders, and the laws don't just apply to ships, they may also cover airlines, railroads and trucking.

About 90 percent of US-flagged tankers and 36 percent of US-flagged container ships are used on routes protected by the Jones Act.

If the Act were repealed, these vessels would either cease operation or be registered elsewhere. The US Navy would also have to build and greatly expand its sealift assets.

Crowley Maritime Corp., the US shipping line, has taken delivery of the “Taino”, the second of two of the world’s first combination container and roll-on-roll-off ships powered by liquefied natural gas and to be refueled at the Eagle LNG shoreside bunkering depot at Jacksonville port in Florida for service on the Puerto Rico trade route.

Crowley Maritime Corp., the Florida-based shipping company for the Caribbean, said its fuels unit had acquired 40 additional cryogenic ISO tank containers to meet growing regional demand for US-sourced liquefied natural gas.

Crowley Fuels, a subsidiary of Crowley Maritime Corp. operating from Florida, and US company PowerSecure have formed a partnership to develop micro-grids using LNG and renewables to provide more reliability to power users in the Caribbean and Central America.

US shipping and logistics company Crowley Maritime Corp. said its liquefied natural gas subsidiary successfully completed the first loading of a commercial ISO container shipment from the new Maxville facility in Jacksonville in Florida.

Crowley Maritime Corp., the US shipping group with operations from Florida to the Caribbean, said one of its subsidiaries signed another multi-year supply contract with Pivotal LNG of the US to support a major pharmaceutical company's energy needs in the US territory of Puerto Rico.

Crowley Maritime Corp., one of the pioneers of LNG-fueled shipping in North America and LNG bunkering in the state of Florida, has named four industry veterans to oversee the consolidation of its business under the recently formed Crowley Shipping Group.

US shipping line Crowley Maritime Corp. has launched its second LNG-powered cargo and container vessel at the VT Halter Marine shipyard in the port of Pascagoula in Mississippi to operate in domestic trade from Florida to Puerto Rico.