Page 28: of Maritime Logistics Professional Magazine (Nov/Dec 2018)

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LNG: BUNKERS & INFRASTRUCTURE can area (covering designated coastal areas off the United States and Canada); and the United States Caribbean Sea area (around

Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands)).

By January of 2020 all ocean-going vessels must achieve an

In addition to JAX LNG, TOTE has exhaust that contains 0.50% sulfur dioxide. In October 2018, the collaborated with the United States Coast

IMO also ordered a ban on the carriage of high sulphur fuel by

Guard, specifcally Sector Jacksonville and vessels unless they are ftted with a scrubber. This order takes effect two months after the January 1, 2020 edict for the 0.5% the Liquefed Gas Carrier National Center of “ sulphur cap comes into force.

Expertise; Jacksonville Fire Department, Port of

There are several ways to achieve that goal; some are as simple as dramatically slowing vessels down to reduce all exhaust gas-

Jacksonville, American Bureau of Shipping and ses. Other ways extend to the complicated and costly process of numerous vendors and trade associations.

attaching an aftermarket scrubber to the existing exhaust system of a ship that continues to burn high sulfur fuel. With the most common scrubbers, open and closed loop wet scrubbers, the ex- designing skill as well as sharing its shipbuilding technology.

haust is blended with alkaline water that dissolves the sulfur after Isla Bella’s overall design and that of the subsequent sister ship, passing through a lot of plumbing and sends it into the ocean. Perla del Caribe were based on a proven DSME container ship

Then there is the LNG fuel alternative and all that entails. design that features a double hull. Both have an overall length of 764.4 feet) and a beam of 105.6 feet, which equates to 13 rows of containers, and a draft of 34.4 feet). Their capacity of 3,100 TEUs

TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico

The US Jones Act carrier TOTE Maritime, through its subsid- makes Isla Bella and Perla del Caribe the largest container ships iary TOTE Shipholdings, placed an order for two LNG-powered currently deployed on the intra-America container trades.

container ships in 2012, long before the IMO’s rules were com- According to the company, main propulsion is provided by a pleted. The new Marlin class vessels are the frst ships of their single MAN B&W 8L70MEC8.2- GI (ME-GI) unit, which is the kind. They had a combined cost of US$324 million. They were world’s frst gas-injected, dual-fuel, low speed diesel engine that ordered from the USA’s General Dynamics NASSCO and includ- can run on both gas and standard bunker fuel oil. It is said to be ed an option for an additional three vessels. a signifcant advance in propulsion technology. It provides a total

General Dynamics NASSCO commenced construction of the frst of 25,191kW at 104 rpm, giving Isla Bella and Perla del Caribe

Marlin-class vessel with a steel-cutting ceremony in February 2014, a maximum service speed of 22 knots. The engines were built which took place at NASSCO’s shipyard in San Diego. The Mari- under license from MAN Diesel & Turbo by Doosan Engine of time Administration (MARAD) sanctioned a $324.6 million loan South Korea, which successfully won the order in 2013. guarantee to TOTE and its parent company, Saltchuk Resources, for TOTE says the lynchpin for the new design to pass all its tests the construction of the two Marlin Class vessels in September 2014. was the ME-GI Fuel Gas Supply System (FGSS), which has 300

The frst vessel, Isla Bella, was launched in April 2015. The bar of operating pressure. Doosan tested this at its Changwon second vessel, Perla del Caribe, was christened and launched plant and after two months of extensive tests the new gas system in August 2015. The frst vessel entered into service in October passed all of the substantial regulations and restrictions set down 2015 while its sister vessel was delivered in January 2016. Both by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the United States sail from Jaxport’s Blount Island Marine Terminal. Coast Guard (USCG).

In January 2015, WesPac Midstream and the AGL Resources’ On June 3, 2014 the engine successfully completed its frst of- wholly owned subsidiary, Pivotal LNG, signed a long-term agree- fcial test run. The main engine is aspirated by two MAN TCA66 ment with TOTE to provide LNG for its container ships. turbochargers. The ships Isla Bella and Perla del Caribe primarily

WesPac Midstream and Pivotal acquired land to build a new natu- operate on LNG. The ME-GI engines selected to propel them are ral gas liquefaction bunker facility at Dames Point with capacity to next generation, eco-friendly engines designed to reduce particu- produce in excess of 120,000 gallons of LNG per day in mid-2016 late matter (PM) by 99%, sulphur oxide (SOx) emissions by 98%, to meet the LNG fuel requirements of the Southeastern United carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 71% and nitrous oxide (NOx)

States and the TOTE feet. This LNG is distributed to TOTE ships emissions by 91% when compared with existing diesel engines. by North America’s frst LNG bunker barge, Clean Jacksonville. Auxiliary power is provided by three MAN 9L28/32DF auxiliary engines, also manufactured by Doosan Engine, each featuring a single MAN TCR18 turbocharger.

Meet the TOTE Marlin class

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co (DSME) sub- Both of the Tote Marlin class ships feature two stainless steel sidiary Daewoo Ship Engineering Co (DSEC), based in Busan, cryogenic tanks manufactured by Cryo of Sweden and weighing

South Korea, designed the Marlin class vessels. For its commer- 380 tons each. The tanks each have a capacity of 900m3 and are cial vessels, NASSCO cooperates with DSME, which enables the located aft of the accommodation. They provide a total capacity

American shipbuilder to have access to DSME’s substantial ship of around 465,000 gallons. DSME’s patented LNG fuel-gas sys- 28 Maritime Logistics Professional November/December 2018 | |