France’s first liquefied biomethane (BioLNG) production unit could be established at a French port.
EveRé, operator of the multi-process household waste treatment plant commissioned by Métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence, the CMA CGM Group, Engie subsidiary Elengy and TotalEnergies have joined forces to study the feasibility of creating the unit at Marseille Fos Port.
“Produced by converting the biodegradable part of household waste from the Marseille Provence region, BioLNG would allow for the decarbonization of shipping services departing from the Grand Port Maritime in Marseille and would be used primarily for the CMA CGM Group’s LNG-powered vessels,” said TotalEnergies.
The circular-economy based project benefits from the existing infrastructure at the Grand Port Maritime, including EveRé’s waste methanization unit, Elengy’s LNG terminals, which will be used for the storage and delivery of the BioLNG, TotalEnergies’ bunker vessel, which will be located at the port as of January 2022, and CMA CGM’s fleet of LNG-powered vessels.
BioLNG, combined with the dual-fuel gas engine technology developed by CMA CGM, reduces greenhouse gas emissions (including carbon dioxide) by at least 67% relative to well-to-wake VLSFO (the complete value chain), explained TotalEnergies. On the basis of a tank-to-wake measurement (at vessel level), greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by 88%.
LNG allows for a 99% reduction in sulfur oxide emissions, a 91% reduction in fine particles emissions and a 92% reduction in nitrogen oxide emissions. By the end of 2024, 44 of the CMA CGM Group’s vessels will be powered by LNG.
