Chair of multi-sector industrial gas coalition SEA\LNG Peter Keller says over time, bio-LNG and synthetic LNG will provide a pathway to meet IMO 2030 and 2050 requirements
The longer we wait to do something about carbon emissions, the more difficult it is going to be to control, said SEA\LNG chair Peter Keller at Riviera’s Maritime Air Pollution Conference, Americas in Miami.
There are varying opinions across the industry about what the best options are, but SEA\LNG, an industry coalition for gas fuels, is clear on what it sees as the best option to adopt in the near term.
Not only is LNG safe, commercially viable, economical, and fully compliant with ECAs across the globe, there are signs that the maritime industry is ready for it to become the norm, Mr Keller told attendees.
He argued that there is decisive growth in bunkering infrastructure at ports around the world, which he attributed to increased uptake by cruise ships, container ships and other vessels.
“Some of these assets get pretty expensive, and yet we are still seeing a lot of that infrastructure in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, up in Cape Canaveral for Disney and other cruise operators, and in Jacksonville. Those capabilities are coming to the Port of New York, especially for cruise lines, and there is certainly a lot of activity in Asia, specifically Singapore and Japan. We see that continuing to grow. The more that happens, the more comfortable shipowners will be with the idea that they will be able to get natural gas safely and when they need it.”
While acknowledging that there are still troubling aspects of LNG that need to be addressed – such as carbon and methane emissions – he shared SEA\LNG’s belief that hesitant owners will eventually embrace LNG as its economic and environmental benefits become more obvious.
“LNG provides a clean pathway forward for both important global health and air quality initiatives and a carbon-neutral maritime industry,” said Mr Keller.
Most importantly, he reminded attendees that a wait-and-see approach “is not a plan”.
“Clean air is still an issue. We all fly a lot, and we all fly in and out of cities. That yellow cloud that we see when we fly into major cities around the world? That is not natural, and that is not good. That is why we have IMO 2020,” Mr Keller said. “Carbon is another issue, and it is a difficult one. But at the end of the day, we are moving in the right direction with options like LNG.”
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