Scrubber-Equipped, Ammonia- and LNG-Ready VLCC Delivered

The tanker has both the 'Ammonia Fuel Ready' and 'LNG Fuel Ready' notations from classification society ABS. Image Credit: Capital Ship Management

Capital Ship Management has taken delivery of a scrubber-equipped tanker that is suitable for conversion to either LNG or ammonia propulsion at a later date.

The company has taken delivery of the VLCC Amore Mio from Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries in South Korea, it said in a statement on its website this week. The ship is the first of a pair of vessels of this type being delivered this year.

The tanker has both the 'Ammonia Fuel Ready' and 'LNG Fuel Ready' notations from classification society ABS. These notations typically mean the vessel has been designed with enough space on board for the larger fuel tanks needed for these alternative fuels, meaning a retrofit to run on them will be possible at a later date.

The pair of tankers will be "two of the most environmentally friendly, technologically advanced and efficient vessels in the global VLCC fleet," the company said in the statement.

Capital Ship Management operates a fleet of 12 VLCCs, 13 Aframaxes, 11 MR/Handy product tankers and one small tanker.

Shipping companies are increasingly taking on alternative fuels as they order new tonnage ahead of GHG emission restrictions being imposed on the industry. LNG is for now by far the most popular alternative fuel choice, but methanol propulsion is also increasingly being considered as green methanol production is ramped up.

Ammonia propulsion is likely to take up a significant share of the marine energy mix in future decades, but further research and development work on how to bunker it safely will be needed first.