Irvine, California headquartered WesPac Midstream LLC (WesPac) and its affiliate Clean Marine Energy LLC (CME) yesterday signed a construction contract with Orange, Texas based Conrad Orange Shipyard, Inc., a division of Conrad Shipyard, LLC (Morgan City, LA), to build the first dedicated LNG bunker barge for the marine market in North America, WesPac said in a press release.
This barge will be a critical supply chain component in ongoing efforts around the world to reduce the environmental impact of maritime activity through the conversion of ships to LNG.
The first 2,200 cubic meter (cbm) barge is expected to be delivered in early 2016 and planned to initially be deployed in Tacoma, Washington, to service shipowner Totem Ocean Trailer Express’s (Totem Ocean) “Orca class” RO/RO vessels, in addition to other LNG-powered vessels. Subsequently the barge will be relocated to Jacksonville, Florida to serve TOTE’s (parent company to Totem Ocean) newbuild “Marlin class” container vessels and other LNG-powered vessels in the Port of Jacksonville.
The LNG barge will feature one tank equipped with MARK III Flex cargo containment technology, from the French engineering and technology company GTT (Gaztransport & Technigaz)., to be constructed by Conrad Orange Shipyard under GTT license. Bristol Harbor Group, Inc. will be responsible for the vessel’s design, with the American Bureau for Shipping (ABS) acting as the classification society.
This initial bunker barge for TOTE is part of the WesPac/CME plan to provide an integrated LNG solution for engine conversion, infrastructure, supply, and delivery logistics to the shipping industry. As more U.S. Jones Act shipowners and operators seek to meet stringent 0.1 percent sulfur limits within ECAs by converting to LNG as a cleaner bunker fuel, WesPac/CME plans to exercise its options with Conrad to construct additional LNG fueling barges to serve other North American ports.
Irvine, California headquartered WesPac Midstream (WesPac) is a private energy infrastructure company founded in 1998 to develop, build, own and operate midstream assets in North America. WesPac’s primary focus is on infrastructure for the emerging transportation sector for marine vessels, trains and vehicles switching to liquefied natural gas (LNG) from diesel or other oil-based fuels. WesPac provides turnkey solutions that are designed and engineered by WesPac for the specific needs of its customers.
Clean Marine Energy (CME) offers ship owners tailored solutions for emissions compliance, including a proprietary financing mechanism to retrofit vessels with LNG fueling technology without a large upfront capital requirement. CME’s comprehensive offering is built on strategic partnerships between industry leaders that combine technology, engineering expertise, capabilities and track record. CME developed the LNG barge project with the support of its affiliate, Mid Ocean Marine LLC, the technical services of Alternative Marine Technologies LLC (Amtech), and the ship broker services of Shipping & Finance Ltd.
Conrad Shipyard, LLC specializes in the construction, conversion and repair of a wide variety of marine vessels for commercial and governmental customers and the fabrication of modular components of offshore drilling rigs and floating, production, storage and offloading vessels. Conrad’s Orange, Texas shipyard has been licensed by GTT to build their membrane tanks in the US. The yard is located on the Sabine River approximately 37 miles from the Gulf of Mexico on approximately 12 acres. The shipyard has six construction bays under approximately 110,000 square feet of enclosed building area with 14 overhead cranes.