Galp carries out first LNG ship refuelling on an Atlantic island
Galp says it completed last week, at the port of Funchal, Madeira, the first ever liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel refuelling carried out at a Portuguese port, and the first on any Atlantic island.
The refuelling of the AIDAprima, one of the most environmentally friendly cruise ships in the world and the first LNG-powered cruise liner, places Galp as a forefront Atlantic supplier of the cleanest available marine fuels. The LNG supplied to the liner amounted to the average daily consumption of 42.000 households.
Through these projects, Galp offers clients and partners innovative energy solutions that significant-ly reduce their emissions, anticipating trends that will become mainstream in the future. Galp now has the capacity to refuel ships with LNG at any port of mainland Portugal and islands and will soon also provide ship-to-ship refuelling, with added capacity and flexibility.
The LNG used in this operation is transported through cryogenic cistern containers, which maintain the gas in liquid state at very low temperatures, enabling its safe transport. In the Madeira island, this logistics replicates a virtual pipeline that supplies the thermal power plant of Vitória.
Galp’s partner in this operation is Gaslink, a Groupo Sousa unit that runs the LNG transportation and supply logistics between Portugal’s mainland and the port of Funchal.
With 124 thousand tons and a capacity for 3,300 passengers, the AIDAprima is a flagship of AIDA, one of the 10 different cruise brands of Carnival Corp. Plc, the world’s largest leisure travel compa-ny. LNG powers an auxiliary motor that produces the energy used by the ship while at port, thus significantly reducing the local emissions that would result from the use of diesel or fuel.
Until 2020, Carnival will put into operation four vessels that only use natural gas, ahead of the entry into force that year of more restrictive marine fuels legislation. LNG is one of the most flexible, ac-cessible and safer alternatives to diesel and fuel and its usage is widely expected to become increas-ingly common in maritime transport. Carnival, which operates more than 100 ships that travel regu-larly between 700 ports, is a pioneer in this movement.
The AIDAprima is comparable to a small city which, in addition to all the most sophisticated leisure and sports equipment for all ages, also offers 12 restaurants and 18 bars.
