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Cepsa has presented a paper at this week's Gastech event in Tokyo, identifying liquefied natural gas (LNG) as the maritime fuel with the greatest growth potential due to its safety, availability, price and eco-friendly properties.

Cepsa also noted that almost all European ports comply with the safety conditions required for the refueling of LNG. Additionally, the supplier has stressed that the Iberian Peninsula has a vast LNG supply network at its disposal and "offers enormous potential" considering that most of the West-East navigation routes pass through it.

Antonio Melcon, CEO of Cepsa Gas Comercializadora (CGC), remarked: "For LNG to attain a position of leadership as the main fuel for maritime transport on a global scale, it is essential that the players involved in its management - ship owners, authorities, distributing companies, infrastructure operators, etc. - work on its development in a coordinated manner."

As one of the main suppliers of LNG in Spain, Melcon noted that CGC aims to reinforce its position in the market by increasing its sales of the fuel. He also underscored that "thanks to our management capacity, Cepsa has become a world benchmark in the supply of LNG to ships".

Juan Carbayo Puig, Business Development Manager at CGC, observed, meanwhile, that "in 2018, Cepsa will become the first company with the capacity to supply LNG ship-to-ship in Spain with our multi-product barge, specifically at the Port of Barcelona". This was confirmed by the company in September.