Cleaner marine fuel provision in Vancouver

Seaspan Energy provided LNG bunkering services to Silversea’s Silver Nova from its LNG bunker vessel Seaspan Garibaldi in preparation for its voyage to Alaska.

LNG is the first alternative fuel available in significant quantities for the international maritime sector that has been approved for local bunkering, or ship refuelling services, at the port.

“We all have a crucial role to play enabling the energy transition and as a port authority our focus is on putting the infrastructure and processes in place to ensure visiting ships can move beyond traditional marine fuels and embrace alternative fuels like LNG,” said Captain Shri Madiwal, vice president of operations and supply chain at the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

“LNG is one of the most widely adopted alternative marine fuels and the first approved for bunkering at the Port of Vancouver, its introduction is a vital step forward as early planning gets underway to safely introduce other alternative fuels like ammonia and methanol.”

Important milestone

The adoption of LNG bunkering at the port marks an important milestone as the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority supports industry efforts to enhance sustainability and reduce emissions.

Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said that the transition away from traditional marine fuels, such as heavy fuel oil and marine diesel, to cleaner fuels such as LNG is key to reducing emissions and meeting decarbonisation targets at the Port of Vancouver and worldwide.

Offering services like alternative fuel bunkering and shore power infrastructure in Vancouver supports the goals of visiting cruise lines, as they actively work towards reducing their emissions and reaching net zero by 2050, in line with IMO targets.

While biofuels have been available for bunkering at the port for several years in limited quantities, LNG represents the arrival of the first alternative to traditional diesel-based fuels and its introduction will support work towards introducing further alternative fuels such as ammonia.

Seaspan Energy became the first accredited supplier of LNG for ships calling the Port of Vancouver last autumn and currently operates three ship-to-ship LNG bunkering vessels on North America’s West Coast.

The company has successfully completed several LNG bunkering operations for container, car carrier and bulk cargo ships in Vancouver already this year.