Wärtsilä supplies cargo handling to LNG barge
The 5400 m3 barge is being built at the Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding yard in Wisconsin on behalf of NorthStar Midstream. It will be operated by the company’s marine transportation company Polaris New Energy. The order was placed in August 2019.
“This project represents one more strategically important step in the development of a viable LNG supply infrastructure for marine applications,” said Mark Keneford, Wärtsilä’s general manager of marine sales for USA and Canada.
“Wärtsilä, with its vast experience and deep know-how in LNG fuel solutions, continues to play a key role in this process. We are proud and pleased to be partnering with Fincantieri in creating a state-of-the-art solution,” he added.
“LNG is undoubtedly becoming fast established as a sustainable fuel option to reduce shipping’s environmental footprint,” said Todd Thayse, vice president and general manager of Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding.
“That’s why LNG solutions are of strategic interest to our organisation. Our selection of Wärtsilä to supply the cargo handling system helps mitigate risk and assures the success of this latest project,” he added.
The bunker barge will be part of an articulated tug barge that will deliver fuel to both ocean and inland water operated LNG-fuelled vessels. It will initially be assigned to Florida’s eastern coast and there is an option for two additional bunker barges.
The scope of the deal includes the system design and integration, four LNG storage tanks, LNG pumps, a ship-to-ship transfer system, all safety and control equipment, the valves and instrumentation and the gas combustion unit. Deliveries to the yard are scheduled to commence in October 2020, and the barge is expected to be delivered to the customer in mid-2021.
