LNG Adoption Demands Bunkering Facilities, Energy Major Support

Harvey Gulf is building LNG bunkering infrastructure at Port Fourcon

Industry insiders say growth in adoption of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as marine fuel will depend on the development of bunkering services, as well as the performance of companies that have adopted LNG bunkers, and the support of energy majors, Seatrade Global reports.

Industry speakers addressed the issue at the Annual Offshore Support Journal in London recently.

"We've got three additional [LNG-fuelled] vessels that we're marketing now and the interest is high, said Chad Verret, executive vice president for Alaska and LNG operations at Harvey Gulf International Marine (Harvey Gulf).

"Once the first one is delivered, once they understand it and can watch it refuel, it'll remove some of the speculation out of the market."

Because offshore support vessel (OSV) charterers, rather than owners, often pay fuel costs, Verret said oil majors will need to push for the adoption of LNG.

John Grubic, LNG business development manager at Shell International (Shell), said players must work together to solve the "chicken-and-egg" problem created by the need for both bunkering infrastructure and LNG-powered vessels.

"This is not an industry that's known for building infrastructure and hoping that demand comes, we really have to marry our developments in accordance with the market as it evolves," he said.

"We don't see it as solely for us to do all the heavy lifting, but we want to be part of that solution."

Harvey Gulf is now building the first U.S. LNG bunkering station in Louisiana, and CEO Shane Guidry has said the fuel is "the way of the future."