Canada’s Seaspan piloting liquefied RNG to fuel ferries
Seaspan Ferries has become the first Canadian marine company to pilot the use of renewable natural gas (RNG) in LNG form to reduce emissions from its fleet of roll-on/roll-off commercial ferries operating along BC’s coast, it said October 20.
The ferry service currently operates two LNG-hybrid ferries between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island and expects to take delivery of two more this year. It expects the pilot, using liquefied RNG sourced from FortisBC, which operates a liquefaction facility near Vancouver, will confirm greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions of at least 85% compared to conventional diesel fuel.
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“Renewable natural gas, when used in our fleet in conjunction with traditional natural gas, will allow us to move towards our emissions reduction goals and make a real impact on our carbon footprint,” said Harly Penner, director of fleet engineering and vessel development at Seaspan. “It also allows us to leverage the growing production of RNG in our region.”
Last month, FortisBC reopened its RNG subscription program to new subscribers after significantly increasing its RNG supply over the past year. Blending RNG into the existing natural gas infrastructure displaces equivalent volumes of fossil natural gas, lowering the overall GHG emissions profile of the gas stream.
“Using renewable natural gas for marine LNG has the potential to be an emissions game changer for the sector and is yet another example of how renewable gas development is transforming our natural gas infrastructure into a delivery system for carbon neutral energy, supporting BC’s climate action goals,” said Mike Leclair, FortisBC’s vice-president, major projects and LNG.