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Bunker barge operator and marine transportation company Foss Maritime has announced that it will be launching 'the world's first true hybrid tug' in California later this month.

The Seattle-based firm said its low emission tug will be unveiled in San Pedro Bay on January 23rd at 10 am. Port officials, local dignitaries and Foss customers are expected to attend the event together with representatives of Foss Maritime.

Industry analysts and environmental officials alike have praised Foss Maritime’s eco-friendly tug, which the company claims to be 'the world’s first true hybrid'. It reduces nitrogen oxide, particulate emissions, sulphur dioxide and carbon emissions and will exceed the EPA’s Tier 2 emissions requirement for marine engines.

Unlike other tugs, the hybrid tug will rely on batteries and an active power management system to minimize engine use. When the engines are used, they will run at power levels that maximize efficiency, reversing the trend of harbor tugs to spend approximately 60 percent of their time at less efficient low power levels.

Main engine emissions reductions from using the hybrid tug are expected to be in the order of 44 percent for particle emissions and nitrous oxide. Fuel consumption is expected to decrease by 20 to 30 percent with a commensurate reduction in sulphur dioxide and carbon emissions.

The low emission tug will help lower costs. The primary financial benefits of the design come through fuel and lube savings and reduced life cycle and maintenance costs of the major equipment components.

Additionally, the tug’s modular design can be applied as a retrofit technology for existing tugboats. It will be able to incorporate future energy storage improvements in battery technology and hydrogen fuel cells.

Foss Maritime has already won the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air Technology Award for developing the low emission tug, the first time a maritime operating company has ever received the federal government’s prestigious honor.

The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles also recently honored Seattle-based Foss Maritime, calling its innovative approach to reducing air pollution in southern California an outstanding example of corporate leadership.

The green tug is just one of several ways Foss is moving aggressively to improve the global environment.

In October 2007 the company announced its vessels were switching to ultra low sulfur diesel fuel (ULSDF), a move aimed at producing a significant reduction in emissions of particulate matter and carbon monoxide. Port officials in Seattle and Portland lauded Foss for taking an important step to reducing the carbon footprint in Elliott Bay, Puget Sound and the Columbia and Snake rivers.

In August 2007, Foss announced that it had joined the SmartWay Transport® Partnership, a voluntary collaboration between EPA and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution. Foss was the first carrier accepted into the program for its marine transportation services.

Foss has pledged to contribute to the partnership’s goal to reduce 33 to 66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide per year by 2012 by improving the environmental performance of its marine operations.

The unveiling of the green tug will take place at Pier D, Berth 52, Port of Long Beach at 10 am on January 23rd.