The shipping company is maintaining its strategic commitment to this clean energy due to its competitivity and commitment to the environment

The company Baleària is taking another step towards having an ever more eco-efficient fleet. It is along these lines that the shipping company plans to switch to natural gas engines in five ferries in its current fleet over the next two years so they may be propelled by this fuel and reduce contaminating emissions.

The ferries Nápoles, Abel Matutes, Sicilia, Bahama Mama and Martin i Soler are all part of this technological project in which the shipping company will invest a total of 60 million euros. The use of LNG in these five ships is expected to reduce more than 45,000 tonnes of CO2 and 4,400 tonnes of nitrogen oxide (NOx) and completely eliminate all sulphur and particle emissions.

The first of the ships in the fleet to be adapted for a gas-propelled engine will be the ferry Nápoles as plans are for this work to be performed during the winter beaching.

In addition to switching the engines to gas in these five ferries, the company is also studying another two LNG projects and is building two smart ships at Italy's Visentini shipyard, the first of which will be in operation starting next February.

The Chairman of Baleària, Adolfo Utor, says LNG is the most environmentally-friendly fossil fuel and indicates that “the company expects to have nine ships sailing with this energy within three years”.

The shipping company has been working on liquified natural gas-related projects since 2012. Thus, besides being a founding member of the Spanish Natural Gas for Mobility Association (GASNAM), created in 2013, it has strategic agreements with Gas Natural Fenosa (with which it has an exclusive 10-year LNG supply contract) and Rolls Royce and Wärtsilä (to build engines). Moreover, the first LNG energy generator was installed in a passenger ship, the Abel Matutes, last year and an LNG training plan was implemented for ship crew and inspectors in 2015.
Source: Baleària