PaxOcean Engineering has signed an MoU with Singapore-based bunker vessel operator Hong Lam Marine and classification society Bureau Veritas to jointly develop an ammonia bunker vessel design.

Significance: The collaboration is designed to promote the use of ammonia as a marine fuel.

Company roles

• PaxOcean is to focus on developing designs for ammonia-fuelled and ammonia bunkering vessels.
• Hong Lam Marine will provide input specific to operational data, and support and validate the suitability of the ship design for commercial operations.
• And Bureau Veritas will verify compliance with the most applicable and up-to-date rules, particularly those related to the handling of ammonia — drawing on its expertise in ammonia carriage and operations, and previous technical studies on ammonia as a fuel.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) welcomed the formation of a partnership to develop, trial and test-bed new designs and innovative technologies needed to accelerate the transition to a clean economy.

• The MPA's Chief Executive, Ms Quah Ley Hoon, said the project "aligns with our maritime decarbonization efforts to be ready for a multi-fuel bunkering transition to support the future of International shipping."

David Barrow, Vice President, South Asia Zone of Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore, stressed that additional work was needed to overcome the safety and operational issues associated with ammonia.

• "These challenges can be overcome through cross-industry collaboration, and we are very pleased to be working with PaxOcean and Hong Lam Marine to develop an ammonia bunker vessel design that de-risks ammonia as a marine fuel," he added.