Posted on February 20, 2023
FSUE “Rosmorport” and bunker operator of PJSC Gazprom Neft – LLC “Gazpromneft Marine Bunker”, have signed a new cooperation agreement to provide the Company’s newest vessels with liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Within the framework of the agreement, in 2023 “Gazpromneft Marine Bunker” will continue to supply eco-friendly fuel for refueling ferries of FSUE “Rosmorport” carrying out cargo transportation on the Ust-Luga Seaport – Kaliningrad Seaport line. The operator has committed to supply the Company with LNG in the amount of 10,000 tons. This is enough for ferries to carry out more than 15 bunkering.
The first cooperation agreement between the organizations was signed on September 15, 2022 at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum and fixed the bunkering of LNG in the amount of 850 tons.
Sergey Pylin, General Director of FSUE “Rosmorport”, notes that the use of environmentally friendly technologies not only at the design stage, but also during the operation of the new fleet is one of the priority areas of the Company’s work.
“FSUE “Rosmorport” continues to provide uninterrupted communication between the Kaliningrad Region and the main part of Russia and cope with the record-high loads on the ferry line since 2022. In the course of cooperation with “Gazpromneft Marine Bunker” in 2022, we managed not only to gain successful experience in the practical use of LNG as fuel on ferries, but also to note its advantages in the operation of vessels. The use of liquefied natural gas reduces fuel costs, increases the environmental friendliness and safety of transportation in the Baltic Basin, which is strategically important for Russia in the current geopolitical situation,” Sergey Pylin emphasized.
Regular deliveries of LNG fuel for bunkering of the new automobile and railroad ferry General Chernyakhovsky within the framework of the partnership of FSUE “Rosmorport” and “Gazpromneft Marine Bunker” began in the fall of 2022. Deliveries are carried out by the Dmitry Mendeleev tanker, the only vessel in Russia built by order of Gazprom Neft capable of delivering liquefied natural gas using the “ship-to-ship” technology. The first bunkering of the innovative vessel was successfully held in Ust-Luga on October 15, 2022.
In two and a half months in 2022, the General Chernyakhovsky ferry was supplied with LNG five times, in January 2023 – once. As part of the new agreement, in January 2023, bunkering of the second eco-ferry Marshal Rokossovsky operating on the sea line was carried out for the first time in the Baltic Sea.
The ferries have a power plant that uses LNG or diesel fuel with a low sulfur content as fuel. The use of LNG by vessels as fuel increases the environmental friendliness of the transport infrastructure of the North-Western Region of the country by reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere by up to 30 %, nitrogen oxides by more than 90 %, sulfur oxides and soot by 100 % compared to similar vessels using traditional “heavy” fuel.
The innovative dual-fuelled ferries were built by Nevsky Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Plant LLC (part of United Shipbuilding Corporation JSC, USC) in cooperation with Kuzey Star Shipyard from Turkey. The vessels have an Arc4 ice class, which involves independent work in ice up to 0.6 m thick. The ferries comply with all modern environmental safety standards. Ballast water treatment facilities are also provided on the vessels.
