HPP Insight News Brief for July 30, 2015

This year’s High Horsepower (HHP) Summit includes the unique opportunity to view the opening of Applied LNG’s new liquefaction plant at Midlothian, Texas. Following the official October 26 ribbon-cutting, Summit attendees will receive a tour of the new facility and a hosted lunch.

Carnival has released more detail about its four new LNG-fueled cruise ships – two for Germany and two for Italy, and reminds that its Aida line’s new flagship Aidaprima, which is now being completed in Japan, will use LNG in port, beginning in Rotterdam next year.

Lloyd’s Register North America has teamed with Penn Oak Energy to foster an LNG-fueled marine sector. LR will provide technical support and Penn Oak will provide financing. The goal is to ‘help companies raise much needed capital and mitigate the technical risks associated with retrofitting ships.’

Texelstroom, the CNG-powered, solar-assisted ferry for The Netherlands, was slated to launch today from the LaNaval yard in Bilbao, Spain. Starting next summer, the 443-foot vessel is to link the Dutch island of Texel with the port of Den Helder.

MPA, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, has issued a request for proposals from companies wishing to be licensed to offer LNG bunkering services. The agency says it will provide funding for as many as six LNG-fueled vessels as part of a pilot program to commence early in 2017.

Sandia National Laboratories and San Francisco’s Red and White Fleet are collaborating on a high-speed, hydrogen fuel cell-powered passenger ferry and fueling station. MARAD, the U.S. Transportation Department’s Maritime Administration, is funding a feasibility study to examine technical, regulatory and economic aspects.

First steel has been cut for America’s first LNG bunker barge, a 2,200-cubic-meter vessel ordered by WesPac Midstream and its finance affiliate, Clean Marine Energy, for service with TOTE. The barge with Mark III Flex LNG containment by GTT is being built by the Conrad Orange Shipyard in Texas.

Jensen Maritime reports approval in principle from ABS for its articulated tug-barge concept for ocean-capable LNG bunkering. ‘The designation establishes that Jensen’s vessel concept, which is classed as an A1 Liquefied Gas Tank Barge, is compliant in principle with ABS rules and guides,’ Jensen said.

Crowley Maritime reports buying 16 additional cryogenic ISO tanks for its Carib Energy operations. The 40-foot tanks, which each hold 10,700 gallons of LNG, feature technological improvements that increase the offload rate, allowing for faster fuel transfers to customers, Crowley says.

Capstone Turbine reports an order for a C1000 microturbine to be installed at a power generation facility owned by Kineticor Resource Corp. Kineticor is a Canadian energy services company that provides customized and onsite power generation solutions effectively converting by-product gas to usable power.

HHP Summit 2015 takes place October 27-29 in Dallas, Texas. The Summit’s three-day program will showcase the key fueling solutions, engines, equipment, technology, and policies driving the advance of natural gas as a diesel displacement for marine, mining, E&P, locomotive, and off-pipeline power generation applications.