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LNG Is 'Best Alternative' for Paring Ship Pollution, DNV Says
2011-01-18 02:26:09.381 GMT
By Kyunghee Park
Jan. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Liquefied natural gas may beat
out nuclear and fuel-cell technology as shipping lines look
for cleaner and cheaper alternatives to traditional heavy-
fuel oil, said Det Norske Veritas.
"LNG is the best alternative we have from an
environmental and financial point of view," Remi Eriksen,
chief operating officer at ship inspector Det Norske Veritas,
said yesterday at a conference in Singapore. Nuclear power
will remain socially unacceptable, while fuel-cell technology
isn't yet advanced enough, he said.
Shipbuilders have begun developing LNG engines as the
International Maritime Organization draws up regulations to
lower carbon and sulfur emissions to pare pollution. The
shipping industry emits about 3 percent of the world's carbon
each year, equivalent to 1 billion tons, according to Thor
Jorgen Guttormsen, president of the Norwegian Shipowners'
Association.
LNG vessels would likely cost about 10 percent to 15
percent more to build than traditional ships, said Eriksen.
In the long run, there would be cost-savings because LNG is
cheaper than heavy fuel, he said. Heavy-fuel oil is the
sludge left over after crude oil is refined into more
valuable products such as gasoline and jet fuel.
There are now about 23 ferries and offshore support
vessels that run on gas engines in Norway, Eriksen said.
Sulfur Reduction
Sulfur in fuels must be reduced to 0.5 percent by 2020
from the current 4.5 percent as part of IMO efforts to cut
pollution from the shipping industry. Sulfur is a pollutant
said to cause acid rain. In more environmentally sensitive
areas, the upper limit will drop to 0.1 percent by 2015 from
1 percent.
LNG cuts carbon emissions from shipping by about 25
percent, sulfur oxides by almost 100 percent and nitrogen
oxides by 85 percent, according to Det Norske Veritas.
Nitrogen oxide pollution is also being curtailed under the
regulations.
LNG is natural gas chilled to minus 162 degrees Celsius
(minus 260 Fahrenheit), turning it into liquid for shipping
by tankers.
Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., the
world's second-biggest builder of drill ships, and MAN SE are
jointly developing an engine fueled by LNG to be used in
vessels to carry as many as 14,000 20-foot containers. The
shipyard expects to complete the project early this year.
Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's second-biggest
shipbuilder, is working with Waertsilae Oyj to design gas
engines.
For Related News and Information:
Top Shipping: SHPT <GO>
Shipping Functions: BSHIP <GO>
World shipping fleet data: FLET <GO>
--Editors: Lars Klemming, Neil Denslow
To contact the reporter on this story:
Kyunghee Park in Singapore at +65-6212-1541 or
kpark3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Neil Denslow at +852-2977-6639 or
ndenslow@bloomberg.net
