Norway’s Bergen Tankers has awarded a contract to Høglund Gas Solutions to deliver a cargo handling system to convert a fuel oil bunkering vessel into an LNG bunkering vessel – the first such vessel based in Norway
Built in 2010 at Nevsky Shipbuilding in Russia, 47-m Oslo Tank will be renamed Bergen LNG and converted at Westcon Florø as part of a long-term charter with Shell Gasnor, operating out of Bergen harbour in Norway starting in Q4 2020. Bergen LNG will load LNG at Gasum’s Øygarden LNG production facility and serve 10 LNG-fuelled coastal cruise ships being built for Hurtigruten and Havila Kystruten.
Høglund will supply both hardware and automation solutions to ensure safe and efficient operations, including an 850-m3 IMO Type C cargo tank, cargo pumps, bunker manifolds, a custody transfer system and a ship-to-ship transfer system. Høglund will also provide cargo control and emergency shutdown systems, and ship-to-shore/ship-to-ship link systems.
With the deadline for the IMO 2020 0.50% sulphur cap approaching and shipping moving towards decarbonisation, LNG bunkering infrastructure in Europe continues to grow. Bergen LNG is one of 17 LNG bunkering vessels either in service or confirmed for operation in Europe, according to DNV GL data.
“Høglund has worked on several of the world’s current LNG bunkering vessels, and each project has demonstrated how specialist expertise is needed to integrate and control the systems of these vessels safely and reliably,” said Høglund Gas Solutions director projects Peter Morsbach. “Retrofits should be an easy way for an owner to benefit from the shift to alternative fuels, but there are complications that can stand in the way that require more than the standard one-size-fits-all solution to overcome,” he noted.
“This retrofit is a complex technical challenge from both a hardware and software engineering point of view,” said Bergen Tankers technical and marine manager Ingemar Tønder Presthus. “Høglund was an ideal choice, based on their track record fitting automation systems for LNG bunker vessels and other vessel types elsewhere in the world, and their ability to execute a retrofit quickly.”
Høglund also supplies the fuel gas supply systems for the Hurtigruten vessels that will operate out of Bergen. The vessels will be compatible for use with sustainably sourced bio-LNG, allowing significant CO2 savings. As the supplier of gas systems to both Bergen Tankers and Hurtigruten, Høglund’s solutions will underpin all onboard links in the fuel supply chain, ensuring an efficient and technically sound link during bunkering.
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