LNG

Peninsula, the leading global independent marine energy supplier founded to fill a gap in the Gibraltar market for bunkering services and benefitting from the assistance of a refinery across the bay in Algeciras in Spain, has fixed its first Biofuel deal for one of the world’s largest shipping companies from China.

An LNG carrier, the 162,000 cubic metres “Adam LNG”, was hit by a bulk carrier while at anchor off Gibraltar’s Europa Point, and there were no injuries to either crew, though the cargo ship suffered the most damage and had to be beached off Catalan Bay, a main tourist area on the Rock.

Enagás, the Spanish gas grid and liquefied natural gas terminal network operator, and maritime fuels company Peninsula Petroleum Ltd, have signed a joint venture deal for the building and charter of an LNG bunkering vessel based at the Port of Algeciras to serve the Strait of Gibraltar shipping lanes.

The bunkering vessel with capacity of 12,500 cubic metres will be built at the South Korean Hyundai Mipo Dockyard shipyard and is expected to be delivered in the third quarter of 2023.

The vessel will be chartered by Peninsula through an initial seven-year contract. It will load LNG fuel at Enagás regasification terminals, mainly the one at Huelva in southwest Spain.

The Enagás subsidiary called Scale Gas signed the agreement with Peninsula.

The LNG bunkering project will be co-financed by the European Union to the tune of €11 million ($13.3M) as part of the EU Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) transport aid programme.

The financing is available as part of the EU’s support of the development of LNG as a maritime fuel to help avoid sea pollution and to improve air quality in ports.

“The signing of this agreement is in line with Enagás’s commitment to promoting the development of a value chain that allows more efficient and sustainable maritime transport,” said Marcelino Oreja, Chief Executive of Enagás .

John A. Bassadone, the CEO and founder of Peninsula, said the project would serve a growing market and promote cleaner fuel.

“Peninsula and Enagás share the vision of developing the use of LNG as a transitional maritime fuel,” explained Bassadone.

“Having the support of a partner like Enagás is incredibly positive and exciting,” he stated.

Also party to the agreement is the Spanish Port Authority of Algeciras.

“We have been working intensely to promote alternatives to current fuels and developing the use of LNG as a proven technology that is currently available to serve ship owners already asking for LNG in the Port of Algeciras,” said Gerardo Landaluce, President of the Algeciras Port Authority

“Two years after the signing of this agreement, supported by Enagás and along with the co-financing of the European Union, the Bay of Algeciras will have a stable LNG bunkering supply service,” added Landaluce.

The Spanish government said that the liquefied natural gas carrier, the “Bilbao Knutsen”, sustained damage when it collided with another vessel near the LNG import terminal at the Port of Huelva on the Gulf of Cadiz in southwest Spain.

The European Commission is giving financial support for the construction of the first LNG bunkering barge to operate in the Port of Algeciras near the Strait of Gibraltar under a project backed by Enagás, the Spanish gas network and LNG terminal operator as well as the local Port Authority.

The executive arm of the European Union has signed an agreement with Enagás covering the co-financing to build the first barge dedicated to LNG bunkering in Algeciras.

The barge will load LNG at the Enagás import terminal in Huelva in southwest Spain and will operate in the port area of Algeciras.

The project consists of the construction of the barge with a storage capacity of 12,500 cubic metres of LNG and commissioning is scheduled for 2023.

Once in operation, the barge will re-fuel shipping customers or reload other barges for subsequent supply to smaller ships in Algeciras Bay or in the Port.
“This project is promoted by the Enagás subsidiary specialized in small-scale LNG supply infrastructures, Scale Gas, and the Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA),” said Enagás.

The EU initiative, coordinated by Enagás, is part of the “LNGhive2” strategy led by Spain’s Puertos del Estado and the EU’s transport aid program called Connecting Europe Facilities, which will finance 20 percent of the project, or approximately €11 million (£13.5M).

“The objective is to support the development of the LNG market as a sustainable maritime fuel, in line with the European Directive 94/2014 on alternative fuels,” explained Enagás.

The Port of Algeciras, which handles containerships, cargo vessels and ferries to North Africa, made the first supply of LNG as fuel for ships in Spain by tanker truck and in 2012 in a truck-to-ship transfer.

In 2020, seven such operations were carried out in Algeciras and 300 percent more LNG was supplied to ships than in 2019.

Once operational, this new barge will support both ship-to-ship and truck-to-ship operations.

Enagás noted that six Spanish ports now offer LNG bunkering.

LNG is seen by the shipping industry as a solid alternative for the move towards the decarbonisation of maritime transport and is regarded as the cleanest fuel among those currently available.

“In addition to promoting more sustainable maritime transport and improving air quality in the Bay of Algeciras, this project will consolidate efforts by Spain and the Port of Algeciras to be a European benchmark for LNG bunkering in the Strait of Gibraltar,” stated the Spanish company.

According to the European Maritime classification society DNV GL, there are more than 175 LNG-powered vessels operating in the world.

“This new ship for Port of Algeciras will join the 20 barges that already supply LNG worldwide and will reinforce the role of the country, and its respective ports, in the field of LNG bunkering,” stated Enagás.

Gibraltar has formally opened its liquified natural gas import terminal as the British overseas territory switches from diesel power to gas-fired electricity and promotes cleaner fuel for shipping visiting the port.

Gibraltar said its new gas-fired power station project had handled its first operation with a small-scale LNG carrier delivery as part of safety trials in the run-up to the start of full operations.

The American Bureau of Shipping, the US classification society, has signed a joint development program (JDP) with Athens-based company Probunkers to provide technical support as it embarks on designing a fleet of specialist LNG bunker vessels for key ports.

Chart Industries, one of the leading providers of liquefied natural gas liquefaction and storage equipment, swung to a net profit for 2016 from a previous loss amid signs of a rebound in the industry as the company sought more business like the recent order for an LNG import terminal in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar.