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Hamburg-based classification society Germanischer Lloyd (GL) has said that LNG's envronmental record means it is well placed to be used as an alternative to heavy fuel oil as ship fuel, but that an LNG delivery infrastructure will be needed in order for vessels other than gas carriers to consume the product on a large scale.

According to GL, the limited amounts of fossil fuel resources will drive the tendency towards fuel with lower carbon content, following the long term trend in fossil energy carrier use towards energy carriers with lower carbon content.

GL points out that an increasing number of LNG carriers are now driven by highly efficient gas engines, which has enabled the introduction of LNG as ship fuel. But the introduction of LNG as a fuel for shipping will also require the availability of LNG in ports and the aim to protect the environment from CO2 and NOx emissions, GL says.

Commenting on the legal requirements, GL says the International Code for Gas as Ship Fuel (IGF-Code) will also include the requirement for use of gas as a fuel on liquefied gas tankers and therefore "open the door" for gas to be used as a fuel on LPG tankers.

With regard to liquefied gas tankers, GL says the IGF-Code will substitute the regulations currently given in chapter 16 of the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied Gases in Bulk (IGC-Code) for LNG as fuel on LNG carriers.

Speaking about other vessel types GL said: "For vessels other than gas carriers the questions arise whether gas as ship fuel has a market and how the supply chain will look like. Moreover, the questions related to the fuel price and the availability of LNG in ports is of key importance. Without an LNG infrastructure the applications will be limited to special routes with dedicated possibilities for LNG supply and special ship types with dedicated routes like ferries."

According to GL the port cities most likely to begin using LNG within their energy supply infrastructure are Baltic sea locations such as Luebeck, Trelleborg, Swenemuende, Gothenburg and Stockholm. In the case of the city of Luebeck, an LNG-receiving terminal project was developed so that the city could benefit from gas supply.

Regulation

According to the current International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), only fuels with flash points above 60°C are permitted to be used as fuel. This excludes gases as fuels with the exception of LNG tankers which are permitted by the IGC-Code to use LNG as fuel for propulsion.

Twenty vessels are currently running on LNG as fuel in Norway after gaining permission from the national administration. Amongst these are a number of car ferries and two offshore supply vessels. The first RoRo vessels are under construction in India with a delivery scheduled for 2010.

According to GL, these vessels demonstrate that gas as ship fuel is an option for propulsion of vessels other than liquefied gas tankers.

Work has begun on the development of interim guidelines for natural gas as ship fuel. The IGF-Guidelines are now under final review by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The guidelines are limited to natural gas as fuel and internal combustion engines as energy converters.

According to GL, the introduction of these guidelines will enable the introduction of gas as ship fuel on an international scale. They will be the international safety standard for the coming years until a general code is developed and set into force as part of the SOLAS convention.

The IMO time schedule is the next SOLAS revision which is scheduled for 2014. The IGF-Code will include requirements for other gases than LNG and also other energy converters than IC-engines. This means, LPGs will be included together with boilers, turbines and fuel cells will be covered.