First LNG Bunkering Terminal For Denmark

The new LNG terminal will be used by Fjord Line's LNG-fuelled cruise ferries MS Stavangerfjord and MS Bergensfjord.

Midstream liquified natural gas (LNG) company Liquiline Europe AS (Liquiline) says it has inked a deal to design, construct, and commission an LNG ship bunkering terminal for Norwegian ferry operator Fjord Line AS at the Port of Hirtshals.

It will be Denmark's first LNG ship bunkering terminal, and used to bunker Fjord Line's LNG-fuelled cruise ferries MS Stavangerfjord and MS Bergensfjord.

Set to be operational in Q4 of this year, the terminal will have an on-site storage tank with a gross volume of 500 m3 and the capability to bunker LNG at 400 m3 of LNG per hour, fast enough to allow Fjord Line to bunker its vessels within the two hour time they dock at port.

The ship bunkering terminal will be of Liquiline-design, a LiquiStation Bulk ST2FF type.

"We are very pleased with this agreement with Fjord Line, since it is based on our new LNG ship bunkering terminal design," commented Dag Lilletvedt, CEO of Liquiline Group.

"In Fjord Line we get a strong and innovative industrial partner, being in the forefront of using LNG as bunker fuel in their new cruise ferries."

Gert Balling, Director of Fjord Line, said: "Fjord Line is very much looking forward to have this LNG ship bunkering terminal from Liquiline established. It will enable us to bunker our ships quickly and give us the possibility to make use of this terminal commercially."

Now operating between Norway and Denmark, MS Stavangerfjord and MS Bergensfjord were commissioned and set in operation in July 2013 and March 2014 respectively.

Each vessel has a capacity of 1,500 passengers and 600 cars, trucks, and cargo.

In July 2012, Fjord Line said the MS Stavangerfjord, which was under construction at the time, would be the world's first international cruise ferry powered solely by liquefied natural gas.