Offshore oil and gas engineering specialist NLI Solutions (NLI) has developed a concept for a LNG Bunker Barge based on the NLI LNG tank design. The concept has been further developed in a design study together with the Marine division of Rolls-Royce and Wilhelmsen Technical Solutions (WTS).
LNG as is the cleanest commercial available fuel for ships today. The movement towards LNG is rapidly increasing, but a limiting factor is practical availability of LNG bunker facilities. LNG Bunker Barges are often called the ”missing link” for LNG to happen. Today only one such exists, capable of 187 m3 of LNG, whilst oceangoing ships need to bunker several thousand cbm. Building a small carrier for bunker purposes is expensive so NLI’s suggestion is a high-tech low cost barge, the HighTechBarge (HTB).
The HTB will for safety reasons be very maneuverable with pod-drives, as is used in offshore support vessels, have state-of-the-art electronics for danger detection and early evasive maneuvering.
The NLI LNG tank is an atmospheric, prismatic steel tank, type ”B”, in this study capable of containing 4000 m3 of LNG. It will be covered with a new insulation system with very low levels of boil off gas (BOG).
The electricity production for both propulsion and all barge and LNG/gas systems is of course from an environment friendly clean burning gas engine. The HTB has a large pressure tank on the aft deck for BOG handling and gas delivery to engine.
Since re-condensation equipment is very expensive, takes a lot of space, and has very low efficiency for small installations like this, the HTB will use BOG for its own purposes. If the HTB has long periods without activity (bunker customers), excess BOG can be delivered to a shore side gas grid, or the barge can deliver electric power to a shore side electric grid.
The study has been carried out and planned with:
The design challenges existing class regulations and codes, and DNV has participated in looking at limitations and possibilities in this area.
[mappress] LNG World News Staff, June 05, 2013; Image: NLI