Image: GAC Group

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The Fure Ven - a dual-fuel vessel owned and operated by Swedish firm Furetank - has become the first non-US flagged vessel to bunker LNG in a US port.

The 18,000-deadweight-tonne (dwt) vessel transited St. Johns River on September 1, calling at Jacksonville's Talleyrand Marine Terminal, which serves Crowley Maritime Corporation.

Physical supplier Eagle LNG Partners subsequently transferred 225 metric tonnes of LNG to the ship from its on-site bunker station, with delivery taking less than seven hours to complete.

The tanker was laden with renewable diesel cargo for Swedish petroleum and biofuels company Preem.

GAC Group assisted all parties by broking the LNG fuel and providing ship agency services to the vessel during its voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. It was the first time that GAC's Bunker Fuels division had secured a deal to supply LNG as a marine fuel.

Eagle LNG President, Sean Lalani, remarked: "As a pioneer in LNG bunkering and a global leader in small-scale LNG, the team at Eagle LNG is proud to have partnered with the trailblazers at Furetank and GAC, along with numerous crucial stakeholders including Jaxport, Crowley Maritime and the U.S. Coast Guard, to safely accomplish this first-ever LNG bunkering in the United States. It is only fitting that this first bunkering happens in Jacksonville where Jaxport, local officials, and the community have embraced the shipping industry's transition to the more sustainable, affordable LNG.

"Were it not for the pioneering spirit of our partners at Crowley Maritime, with whom we have already safely completed over 100 bunkering events, and the vision of Chairman and CEO Tom Crowley, this historic milestone for LNG bunkering globally and North Florida would not have been possible."

Lars Höglund, CEO of Furetank, commented: "As early as 2014, Furetank decided to convert one of our vessels to LNG propulsion. Backed by the encouraging effects thereof, we developed the V-series, a vessel design with drastically lowered emissions and fuel consumption. These vessels have already cut CO2 emissions beyond the IMO target of a 50 percent reduction by 2050.

"We note with pleasure that LNG bunkering is becoming available in more and more places, not least the U.S., and we are confident that investing in the V-series particularly contributes to a cleaner environment worldwide."

GAC Bunker Fuels' Global Director, Nicholas Browne, stated: "Like Furetank and Eagle LNG, GAC wants to do more than simply follow the development of environmentally friendly shipping – we want to play an active role in creating and facilitating the transition.

"As an integrated service provider for all types of vessels, including LNG carriers, GAC is uniquely positioned to deliver its first LNG bunker supply to the Fure Ven, and we are actively being engaged by many of our shipping principals to support their adoption of LNG as a marine fuel."