Sanmar hands over 1st LNG-powered tug to HaiSea Marine
Sanmar hands over 1st LNG-powered tug to HaiSea Marine - Offshore Energy
Sanmar hands over 1st LNG-powered tug to HaiSea Marine
Turkish shipbuilder Sanmar Shipyards has delivered Canada’s first LNG dual-fuelled tugboat Haisea Kermode to HaiSea Marine, a joint venture majority owned by the Haisla Nation in partnership with Seaspan ULC.
Haisea Kermode can run on diesel or LNG, and features a diesel exhaust after-treatment system that complies with IMO Tier III emissions standards, the shipyard said.
The tugboat integrates Astar 4000 DF design from Vancouver-based naval architects Robert Allan Ltd, featuring the two Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD).
At 40.20 m in length, with a 16.00 m bean and maximum draft of 7.10 m, and with more than 100 tonnes of bollard pull, the tug, along with its sister Haisea Warrior, is set to generate indirect escort forces of approximately 200 tonnes.
According to Sanmar, the tug’s ability to perform long-distance escort missions solely using LNG is a major advance towards sustainability as it results in significant emissions reductions compared to conventional diesel tugs of the same power.
“That a tug this powerful comes with such impressive green credentials is a fine example of how technological advance and innovation can pave the way to a sustainable and environmentally-friendly future for our industry. We at Sanmar are proud to be at the forefront of these advances,” Ali Gurun, Chairman of Sanmar Shipyards, said.
The tug will provide harbor and escort services in the extremely environmentally sensitive region. Haisea Kermode is about to be joined by its sister tug Haisea Warrior.
Namely, Haise Kermode is part of a five-tug series, three electric and two LNG-powered, which are intended for LNG Canada’s new export facility in Kitimat, British Columbia. The three electric tugs have already been delivered to its owner.
LNG Canada is scheduled to export 18m tons of LNG annually from the first phase of the Kitimat project, an equivalent to $25 billion a year.
When completed, the Shell-led LNG Canada project will consist of a natural gas receiving and LNG production unit, a marine terminal with the capacity to accommodate two LNG carriers, a tugboat dock, and LNG loading lines. It will also include LNG processing units, storage tanks, a rail yard, a water treatment facility, and flare stacks.
Its production capacity is planned at 14 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) from the first two trains, with the potential to expand to four trains in the future. The first shipment of LNG is scheduled for mid-decade.
Related Knowledge Center: Offshore wind energy
Over the next decade, U.S. offshore wind power is expected to grow from a single 30-megawatt wind farm off Rhode Island to more than 2,000 MW of capacity along the Atlantic Seaboard. There are contracts for wind power off the coasts of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Virginia.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has estimated the United States has over 4,000 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind potential, enough to power the country four times over.
The growth in part being spurred by state solicitations, including in New York, where then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) set a commitment of 9,000 MW of offshore wind by 2035, and in Connecticut, where in June 2021, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed legislation authorizing the construction of 2,000 MW of offshore wind by 2030.
The offshore development is also being driven by an investment tax credit set to end in December 2019 and is equal to 12 percent of expenditures. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Tom Carper (D-Del.) have introduced a bill to extend the tax credit for up to eight years.
The Interior Department has held eight competitive lease sales that resulted in 15 offshore wind leases over 1.7 million acres that has the potential for 21 GW of capacity. In February 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completed a bidding process that realized $4.37 billion for 488,000 acres across six lease areas in federal waters off New York and New Jersey.
Projects have also been proposed off the Southeast coast, off California and Hawaii, and for the Great Lakes.