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The first large passenger vessel to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG), the M/S Viking Grace, has reached a refuelling landmark by being bunkered for the thousandth time.

In just over three-and-a-half years since the vessel was delivered in January 2013, 1,000 bunkerings have now been performed on the vessel in partnership with Swedish company AGA Gas AB.

The M/S Seagas, which was specially built for ship-to-ship refuelling, is the vessel that has performed the 1,000 LNG fuel deliveries to the Viking Grace. The Seagas supplies the Viking Grace with about 60 tonnes of LNG while the vessel is docked in the morning at Stadsgarden in central Stockholm.

When setting up the operation, Viking Line was looking for a quick bunkering solution with no interruptions, assured deliveries and no effect on cargo handling along the way. As a result, the LNG bukering solution using the Seagas was selected as one that could meet Viking Line's needs and an agreement was signed in February 2012 with AGA Gas AB for the delivery of LNG to its newly ordered passenger vessel, the Viking Grace.

With its strong environmental profile, the ship was a trailblazer in the marine industry, going into service less than a year later, in January 2013.

There were many unanswered questions, including how the gas would actually be supplied to the vessel and the attitude of customers towards what, for them, was a new type of fuel. Among the steps it took to ensure it was well prepared, Viking Line put together factsheets about the properties of the gas. The company expected some degree of scepticism, but in retrospect it says the response was incredibly positive.

"We are really pleased about having used LNG to fuel the M/S Viking Grace," remarked Jan Hanses, President and CEO of Viking Line Abp. "Both the technical solution developed by AGA and the vessel's operation have outperformed expectations, and it is gratifying to note the major benefits for the workplace along with the environmental gains that running on LNG provides."

"We are obviously delighted with the positive response we have had from Viking Line regarding the Seagas and our bunkering solution," said Jonas Akermark, who is in charge of the LNG marine market at AGA Gas AB. "There is still heavy interest in the Seagas, our ship-to-ship bunkering solution and LNG as a marine fuel both in Sweden and internationally. We have a well-functioning infrastructure solution in place in Stockholm and the possibility of bunkering more vessels."