Asia/Pacific News
MSC LNG Order Highlights Importance of LNG Bunkers: Fratelli Cosulich
Global box ship operator Mediterranean Shipping Company is extending its reach into gas-fuelled shipping by taking nearly a dozen ships on charter from Eastern Pacific Shipping.
The move, widely reported in the maritime press, will be taken in some quarters as adding weight to the notion of liquefied natural gas as a viable bunkering alternative to petroleum-derived fuel oil.
While some voices outside the industry -- the World Bank recently released a paper questioning LNG's importance -- are critical, industry insiders tend to take a more pragmatic view.
Bunker player Fratelli Cosulich's investment in an LNG bunkering vessel is illustrative of this approach.
Banking on a single solution to the problem of bunker fuel emissions would be unwise "without a clear idea of when such a solution will be available".
Timothy Cosulich told Ship & Bunker that "LNG is the only solution that is currently available at scale [that allows] for significant emission reduction, particularly with "possible future developments on the bio-LNG side".
"Our recent investment in a LNG bunkering vessel is based on the idea that we need to look for both short-term as well as long-term solutions."
Whether LNG stays as a transition solution or becomes something longer term in curtailing shipping emissions remains to be seen, "it is fair to say that it will be an important factor," he said.
"MSC's move seems to confirm this view."
