10 LOGISTICS
Pulp Paper & Logistics
An alternative clean fuel for shipping I
n anticipation of tightening limits on emissions of sulphur oxides from ships, operators have been looking
at alternative fuels as a means of cleaning up the exhausts of their vessels.
Sulphur oxides and other
exhaust products from the shipping industry contribute five per cent of all emissions and have been said to be responsible for 200,000 premature deaths each year from lung cancer and heart disease. Last year the International Maritime Organisation agreed to set a global cap on the sulphur content of marine fuels sold worldwide to 0.5 per cent in 2020, a reduction of almost 85 percent from current global standard of 3.5 per cent. In large parts of Northern Europe however the regional restriction is already 0.1 per cent.
While the reduction of sulphur
content of the fuel will help, as will the use of exhaust scrubbing systems to reduce the flue gas sulphur content, the noxious gases cannot be eliminated completely.
September/October 2017 Methanol is a colourless liquid
The shipping industry is committed to cutting emissions from its vessels to meet newly- agreed objectives that will reduce human health risks. Methanol fuel is one way of achieving this, with Stena Line at the forefront of its use. PPL reports
Alternatives include liquefied
natural gas (LNG), which burns more cleanly. Methanol is another, and has the additional benefit of potentially being made from bio-products, rather than fossil sources.
Since 2005, Stena Line has worked to reduce its environmental impact by means of an energy-saving programme with the ambition of reducing the energy consumption of its ships by an average of 2.5 per cent per year and nautical mile. As part of its environmental objectives, Stena Line has been at the forefront of methanol fuel development, having been the first operator to set up pilot project in 2015, when a suitable vessel was identified and EU support was obtained through its
‘Motorways of the Seas’ initiative. Of Stena Line’s 37 vessels
operating in the Baltic and around the UK, the ferry Stena Germanica was selected. Built in 2001, it is running on the Gothenburg-Kiel service and has a lane metre capacity of 4,000 metres and 1,300 passengers. The conversion project has been carried out in collaboration with engine manufacturer Wärtsilä, the ports of Gothenburg and Kiel as well as the world’s largest producer and supplier of methanol, Methanex Corporation. The conversion of the vessel and the first main engine was carried out at the Remontova shipyard, at Gdansk in Poland. The following main engines have been converted while the vessel has been in operation.
that can be produced from natural gas, coal, biomass or even carbon dioxide. By using methanol, the emissions of sulphur (SOx) are reduced by roughly 99 percent, nitrogen (NOx) by 60 percent, particulate matter (PM) by 95 percent when compared to other fuels currently available. The emissions from methanol
are roughly the same as for LNG, but are easier to process and do not place the same demands on infrastructure. Following the initial phase of the €14 million conversion, and with the first of the engines modified, Stena Germanica re-entered service in March 2015 to become the world’s first ferry with the option to run with methanol as its main fuel. At an inauguration ceremony
at Kiel, the chief executive of Stena Line Carl-Johan Hagman commented: “We are very enthusiastic about methanol’s possibilities and it has the potential to be the maritime fuel of the future. We want to pursue change and development
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