Viking Line has begun operating two of its ro-ro vessels on bio-LNG to generate compliance for Gasum's FuelEU Maritime pooling service, following a letter of intent signed between the companies at the end of 2024.

The Viking Glory and Viking Grace now run on bio-LNG while operating daily services between Turku, Finland, and Stockholm, Sweden, transporting cargo and passengers across the Baltic Sea. The regular route is said to bring predictability to the amount of compliance generated for the pool.

According to Gasum, demand for FuelEU Maritime pooling has increased to levels where it would not be possible to generate the needed compliance using just its own bunkering vessels.

"Demand for FEUM pooling is becoming so high that it would not be possible for Gasum to generate the needed compliance using just its own bunkering vessels anymore," said Jacob Granqvist, Gasum's Vice President, Maritime. "That is why it is central to the scale and stability of our service that we are able to collaborate with a trusted partner such as Viking Line to expand the service to a larger group of shipowners."

Jan Hanses, CEO of Viking Line, noted: "We at Viking Line aim to be among the frontrunners as Finnish maritime shows the world how to transition to a fossil-free future. We have been offering our passenger and cargo customers the chance to buy biogas for their leg between Turku and Stockholm for two years now. This new move enables us to increase our bio-LNG use to 50 percent, allowing for substantial emission cuts on the route."

Gasum's pooling service allows shipping companies to save on compliance costs while promoting the use of low-emission fuels. The company manages the pool, supplies the bio-LNG and offers over-compliance to shipping companies with conventional fuel vessels.

DNV's technology is being used to collect and validate the pool's fuel consumption and emissions data, with the classification society set to verify the pool's balance for EU reporting purposes at the end of the year.

Gasum uses waste-based liquefied biomethane in designated vessels with dual-fuel propulsion to generate regulatory compliance on behalf of the off-takers in the pool. Bio-LNG is described as having life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions that are, on average, 90 percent lower compared to marine gasoil.

FuelEU Maritime is a European Union regulation designed to reduce the carbon intensity of fuels used in European maritime transport. The regulation allows for voluntary pooling of emission reductions between vessels to facilitate compliance.

Viking Line operates routes between Sweden, Åland, and Finland, as well as between Finland and Estonia, with a fleet including Viking Cinderella, Viking Grace, Viking Glory, Gabriella, and Viking XPRS. The company reports annual traffic of 5 million passengers and approximately 130,000 freight units.