Developed as part of the FASTWATER project, funded by Europe\u2019s Horizon 2020 project, the tug is an important step in the port\u2019s ambitions to green its fleet and become climate-neutral by 2050.<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether with our partners, we are pioneering with innovative technologies for the transition to alternative and renewable energy sources,\u201d said Jacques Vandermeiren, chief executive of Port of Antwerp-Bruges.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Methatug is a new and essential step in our efforts to make our own fleet greener and become climate neutral by 2050.\u201d<\/p>\n
Greener fleet<\/strong><\/p>\n The 30m Methatug has a traction force of 50 tonnes and can carry 12,000 litres of methanol, enough for two weeks of tug work.<\/p>\n For the Methatug, the engines from an existing tugboat were converted into \u2018dual fuel\u2019 engines, which means that they run on a mixture of methanol and traditional fuel. The tug will be supplied with methanol by De Wit Bunkering via truck-to-ship.<\/p>\n The launch is part of the port\u2019s green programme which has already seen the delivery of the first tugboat to run on hydrogen<\/a> along with energy-efficient RSD tugboats. In another first, the port will take delivery of an electrically powered tugboat later this year.<\/p>\n