Axpo’s LNG delivery marks ‘inaugural’ STS operation for a boxship at the Port of Málaga

For the first time ever, Switzerland-based renewable energy producer Axpo has supplied a container vessel owned by compatriot shipping titan Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) with liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the Port of Málaga, in Spain.

According to the Swiss energy sector player, MSC’s ship was powered up with 2,800 metric tonnes of liquefied natural gas in a bunkering operation that took place in mid-March 2025. The effort involved the work of a ship chartered from the UK-based midstream LNG & BioLNG company Avenir LNG.

The fuel delivery checkmarks not only the ‘inaugural’ ship-to-ship LNG transfer for the Málaga port but also the ‘first’ simultaneous operations (SimOps) in Spain for a boxship, meaning LNG refueling takes place at the same time as cargo loading and unloading, representatives from Axpo have highlighted.

“We are delighted with the excellent cooperation and support we have received from the local authorities in Malaga in achieving this milestone and obtaining our commercial authorization for the supply of LNG as a fuel,” said Daniele Corti, Axpo’s Head of small-scale LNG.

Domenico de Luca, Head of Trading & Sales at Axpo, underscored that LNG bunkering was an “efficient and cost-effective solution for cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in shipping.”

Axpo’s recent development is said to have been undertaken as a response to the ballooning demand for LNG as a cleaner alternative, with Clarkson’s data from 2023 showing that as many as 185 ports worldwide offer ship-to-ship transfers of LNG. It was disclosed back then that 50 more facilities would be built by the end of 2025 to meet the demand.

Moreover, it is understood that Spain represents a ‘particularly significant’ market for Axpo, which plans to expand its services to other major ports in the country, like Algeciras, Valencia, and Barcelona. The company’s small-scale liquefied natural gas offering in Spain is set to be facilitated by two units, boasting a 7,500 cbm and a 12,500 cbm capacity, respectively.

To remind, back in August 2023, Axpo penned a ten-year charter deal for a 7,500 cbm LNG bunkering vessel capable of transporting bio-LNG and ammonia with Italy’s Gas and Heat SpA and the San Giorgio del Porto shipyard, both players in the fields of cryogenic storage and vessel conversion.

More recently, Axpo Iberia and compatriot ferry operator Baleària completed the first bioLNG bunkering operations at the two Enagás terminals in Huelva and Barcelona. As informed, the Huelva terminal supplied the Port of Málaga, where Baleària operates the Rusadir, an electric and dual gas-powered ferry, while bio-LNG was supplied from the Barcelona terminal to the 2024-delivered Margarita Salas.