Hamburg based LNG supplier Nauticor and its compatriot shipbuilder Fassmer have partnered up on newbuilding and retrofit projects for ships with LNG engines.
Through the cooperation, the two companies hope to generate synergy effects for the commissioning of newbuild or retrofitted vessels, which have been equipped with LNG engines and the respective system components, Nauticor said in its statement.
This initial LNG bunkering operation for the German newbuild research vessel Atair mark the start of the cooperation.
Nauticor and Fassmer started working together back in 2015 when the newbuild ferry Helgoland, the first ferry with an LNG engine built in Germany, received its first LNG from Nauticor (then under the name Bomin Linde LNG) on the premises of Fassmer.
Fassmer’ s head of project, Christian Schmidt , said, “As one of the few shipyards in Europe with experience in constructing of LNG-fuelled vessels, we notice a rising interest in newbuilds and retrofits equipped with environmentally-friendly propulsion.”
He added that additional incentives are created for shipping companies to use LNG as fuel.
“Not only do they benefit from the environmental advantages of LNG, but also from the economic gains generated by using the fuel,” Schmidt said.
The first project to be conducted under the new cooperation was the commissioning and initial LNG bunkering of the research vessel Atair at the Fassmer shipyard earlier this month.
Fassmer was awarded the contract to build the new sea surveying, wreck search and research vessel for the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH). The vessel is supposed to enter service in 2020 and will replace the previous ship with that name.
The team of Nauticor was responsible for purchasing and transporting the LNG for the initial bunkering and supported Fassmer in the execution of the operation. Furthermore, Nauticor will ensure the supply of LNG throughout the whole LNG trial period.