ENGIE, Mitsubishi Corporation and NYK Line have launched Gas4Sea, a new brand for their joint marketing of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel around the world.

Gas4Sea aims to lead innovation through the ship-to-ship supply of LNG for the maritime sector.

A STRONG PARTNERSHIP TO SERVE CLIENTS WORLDWIDE

In 2014, ENGIE, Mitsubishi Corporation, and NYK concluded a framework agreement for a partnership to develop LNG bunkering services. By combining NYK’s shipping expertise with ENGIE and Mitsubishi Corporation’s LNG supply portfolio and terminal access under the brand Gas4Sea, the partners will offer a cleaner, reliable, safe, and cost-effective service to shipping customers worldwide. Through their proven experience in their respective businesses, they will be able to tailor their LNG supply chains to the customers’ needs.

The partners will begin operations in the fourth quarter of 2016, using a purpose-built LNG bunkering vessel (LBV) with a 5,000cm LNG capacity, the first of its kind in the market. Designed to adapt to the largest range of customers, it will be able to bunker vessels at the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, as well as other nearby ports.

The partners will expand their LNG bunkering services under Gas4Sea to meet more customers’ needs into other regions, in collaboration with stakeholders including shipping companies, port authorities, terminal operators, regional suppliers, and local governments and regulators. 

Philip Olivier, CEO of ENGIE Global LNG, commented, “Continuing ENGIE’s long history of innovation, we are proud to launch this first global LNG bunkering service together with our longstanding partners. In the general framework of energy transition, we believe LNG has a key role to play in developing a more sustainable shipping activity. In the coming months, we will start supplying United European Car Carriers’ new dual fuel car carriers operating in the North Sea and Baltic Sea.”

Jun Nishizawa, SVP and deputy COO of Mitsubishi Corporation’s Natural Gas Business Division, commented, “At Mitsubishi Corporation, we continue to strive as a responsible energy supplier to contribute to the reduction of environmental impact leveraging on our half an century experience in LNG. We are at the juncture of achieving substantial emissions reductions in the maritime sector. Through our partnership with ENGIE and NYK, we hope to expedite shipping companies’ transition to LNG by placing ourselves as a key piece in the global marine LNG supply chain.”

Hitoshi Nagasawa, Senior Managing Corporate Officer of NYK Line, commented, "As a leading global shipping company, NYK is also striving to find reliable and environmentally sustainable solutions to help address society's need to reduce emissions. We believe that the use of LNG as a marine fuel is a key innovation in this search and through Gas4Sea, using the world’s first purpose-built LNG bunkering vessel, we and our partners ENGIE and Mitsubishi Corporation will offer ship owners and operators the opportunity to participate in this innovation and further enhance our industry's ability to operate in a more environmentally responsible way."

LNG AS A MARINE FUEL
Compared with conventional oil-based fuels, the use of LNG significantly reduces emissions from engine exhaust, thus enabling ship operators to comply with increasingly stringent maritime emissions regulations.

The development of LNG bunkering is steadily progressing. LNG’s proven safety record and widespread availability position LNG as a key alternative marine fuel.

Source: NYK Line