WinGD, Wärtsilä & GTT to Facilitate Uptake of LNG Fuel

Marine technology companies WinGD, Wärtsilä and GTT have joined forces on making the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel a truly viable option for ship owners and operators.

LNG is becoming an ever more appealing option for owners especially in the wake of the upcoming IMO’s regulations in 2020, imposing 0.5 percent cap on sulphur content in marine fuels.

The trio believes that by combining their expertise they can further facilitate the integration of LNG fuel into the industry for ship owners.

LNG has virtually no sulphur content, produces 80 percent less nitrogen oxide (NOx) and 30 percent less CO2 emissions than conventional marine fuels, and is competitively priced. The fuel is becoming more widely available with the recent investments in LNG bunkering infrastructure, hence, the previous obstacles to its wider uptake are being dealt with.

WinGD, Wärtsilä, and GTT cooperated closely in providing the required equipment for CMA CGM’s 22,000 TEU containerships, the first mega boxships to use LNG as marine fuel. The ships were ordered in 2017 and are set to start delivery in 2019.

“It was through this shared expertise that the industry-shaping collaboration was born,” the joint statement reads.

“Operating on LNG fuel requires close integration between the engines, the fuel cargo tanks, and the fuel supply and control system. We are three companies having expertise in these fields, and by cooperating together we can optimize this integration process to the benefit of owners and operators around the world,” Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and CEO of GTT, expert in building membrane containment systems for LNG, said.

“There is a wind of change blowing throughout the global marine industry. The conservative barriers that once resisted switching to a “new” fuel are falling down, and LNG is now being accepted as a fuel for all types of ships. Through collaboration with other industry leaders, we aim to speed up this process,” Timo Koponen, Vice President, Processing Solutions at Finish technology company Wärtsilä, said.