Titan LNG, one of the leading suppliers of LNG to maritime fleets in North West Europe, reports that it has managed to double the speed of its LNG bunkering deliveries in
Amsterdam using a piece of equipment called the
T-piece, which combines the flow of fuel from two trucks into one bunkering hose.
With a combined pumping rate of 28 tonnes per hour, the T-piece significantly reduces the bunker delivery time compared to sequential truck deliveries.
In a recent delivery, the chemical and oil tanker
Fure West called at
Amsterdam on May 19 and a total of six trucks supplied the vessel with LNG during an operation using a T-piece, Titan LNG reports.
Commenting on the delivery,
Lars Hoglund, managing director at Furetank, remarked: "We really appreciate the efforts made by Titan LNG to deliver LNG to our ships. Quick and efficient bunkering operation is of the utmost importance to us. We look forward to continued cooperation with them in the future."
Didier de Beaumont, Commercial Manager at the Dutch port, noted: "The procedure [on May 19] was permitted at the 'Groene Kade' LNG quay by the Port of Amsterdam Harbourmaster based on a quantitative risk assessment. We are very pleased to be the first port in the wider region that is able to approve the simultaneous discharging of two trucks. We welcome this advance in efficiency, which will hopefully further accelerate the transition to LNG as a marine fuel with the associated environmental benefits."
"We are very happy with this result and the increase in the speed of bunkering process," said Titan LNG's
Michael Schaap.
"Speed is important to reduce the downtime of the vessel so that LNG can compete in every way with conventional bunker fuels. The T-piece is an important innovative step on the road to launching our
Flex-Fueler bunkering pontoon next year."
As Bunker Index
reported in September, the Titan LNG Flex-Fueler was designed and developed by Titan LNG as a new solution for the delivery of LNG to both sea-going and river barges in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) region - Europe's largest bunkering hub. It is set to be the
first LNG bunkering pontoon in North West Europe when launched in the first quarter of
2018.
The solution is designed to have a fixed location to supply inland waterway vessels, but also be navigated to larger sea-going vessels and supply LNG while they load or unload cargo. As a result, the Flex-Fueler is said to minimize costs and maximize operational efficiencies, while providing a safe and quick delivery of LNG.
