DNV, Keppel Marine to Promote LNG Bunkering
Classification society DNV GL and Keppel Marine and Deepwater Technology, a subsidiary of Singapore’s Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M) will work to promote LNG as marine fuel.
DNV GL and Keppel Marine have signed a framework agreement which covers potential newbuilding projects including LNG bunker vessels, small-scale LNG carriers and floating storage regasification units (FSRUs), as well as LNG related assets employing battery and hybrid technologies, DNV said April 12.
As the first delivery in the agreement, DNV GL will issue Approval in Principle (AiP) certificates for two LNG bunker vessel designs from Keppel Marine a 7,500 m3 small-scale LNG carrier with bunkering capabilities and a 7,500 m3 small-scale LNG carrier with bunkering capabilities and hybrid battery propulsion, it said.
The LNG carriers are each designed to carry up to 7,500 m3 of LNG in Type C-tanks. An optimised deck arrangement for the modular LNG gas supply, filling and safety systems increases the cargo capacity and efficiency of the vessels. They are equipped with engines that can run on both diesel and LNG, and will also have a class notation for bunkering which enables the provision of LNG bunkering services if required, DNV GL added.
“One of the objectives of our collaboration with Keppel is to facilitate the increased supply of LNG bunkering infrastructure by being future ready through design approvals of different sizes of LNG bunker vessels, and LNG-related assets such as small-scale LNG carriers and FSRU,” said Johan Peter Tutturen, business director gas carriers in DNV GL.
The collaboration is also intended to further advance asset design by optimising machinery and systems configuration to increase fuel efficiency, using advance simulation tools such as DNV GL’s Cossmos.
Additionally, the parties will work together to establish round table discussions involving all stakeholders in the LNG-as-fuel value chain, including gas and LNG bunker suppliers, designers, shipbuilders, shipowners and operators, in an effort to increase the uptake in demand for LNG bunkering in Singapore and beyond, DNV GL said.
The design and engineering collaborative office will be located at Singapore, with Keppel O&M’s yards to undertake the project execution.