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LNG America has selected Taylor-Wharton to commence the front-end engineering and design work for the cryogenic topside of the company’s 3,000 cubic meter Gemini Class liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge, scheduled for delivery at the end of 2015.

"Taylor-Wharton has been actively engaged in the development process and instrumental in helping to develop the critical path time line for a late 2015 in-service date," commented Keith Meyer, CEO of LNG America.

"The LNG bunker vessels will provide a critical building block in the bridge between the natural gas industry and the global marine industry, and will allow the ship owners and charter parties to receive LNG as a bunker fuel in the same way they receive oil today. With the selection of Taylor-Wharton, LNG America has assembled a top-tier team to support its LNG bunker barge program," LNG America said in a statement.

In May, LNG America announced Jensen Maritime as the naval architect for the project and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) as its class society.

"We are looking forward to working with LNG America on North America’s first LNG bunker barges. Taylor-Wharton is uniquely suited to provide LNG America the cryogenic expertise for this first LNG bunker barge. Our capability to engineer these types of systems as well as to fabricate large LNG tanks makes us an ideal choice," said Eric Rottier, CEO of Taylor-Wharton. "LNG as a transportation fuel and a fuel for the marine market represents a step change in the way LNG is used and we are very pleased to be working on this exciting project with LNG America."

Taylor-Wharton designs and manufacturers a comprehensive range of stationary bulk and portable cryogenic storage systems for gas and liquid applications.

The company's product range includes cryogenic bulk tanks, micro-bulk tanks, transportable liquid cylinders, LNG storage and application systems, cryogenic beverage carbonation vessels, and freezers and dewars for cryopreservation.