Kobe Steel Marks First Use of Screw Compressors with LNG Bunkers

Kobe Steel has received an order for two screw compressors for use on a dual fuel LNG carrier.

Kobe Steel, Ltd. (Kobe Steel) Tuesday announced that it has received an order for two screw compressors for a dual fuel liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier - said to be the first time that screw compressors will be used to supply fuel to marine dual fuel engines.

Kobe Steel says the market for nonstandard compressors for marine dual fuel engines is expected to total over ¥20 billion ($190 million) over the next five years, with the company looking to gain more than half the market share by 2020.

"To date, marine dual fuel engines have been of the middle speed, four-stroke type and driven predominantly by low gas pressure, and the compressors for these engines have only been centrifugal compressors, which excel at low-pressure compression," explained Kobe Steel.

"However, in recent years due to the need to save energy in ship operation and comply with stricter environmental regulations, dual fuel, low speed, two stroke engines that offer high efficiency with a 10 percent improvement in fuel consumption have entered the market. In the future, this type of engine will become the mainstream as its adoption is being considered for nearly all new vessels."

The LNG carrier, which is owned through a 50/50 joint venture between Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Co., Ltd. (MOL) and Itochu Corporation (Itochu), is said to be slated for a 20 year charter with Uniper Global Commodities.

Kobe Steel is set to deliver the compressors to Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Ltd., (Daewoo) in August 2017.

At the end of September, MOL took delivery of a 50,000 DWT dual-fuel methanol carrier Manchac Sun at Minaminippon Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (Minaminippon Shipbuilding).