GENEVA: The Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has joined SEA-LNG, the multi-sector industry lobby group for low-carbon alternatives to bunker fuel.

Last year the world’s largest container shipping line introduced five dual-use LNG-powered vessels and has plans to operate a further 25. MSC’s cruise company also operates dual-use, LNG-powered ships.

“We are committed to catalyzing the development, accessibility and uptake of net zero fuels and believe we have found another excellent partner to help continue to drive the industry in this direction,” commented Bud Darr, MSC EVP, Maritime Policy & Government Affairs. “ We look forward to working with SEA-LNG to further assess and collaborate on the exciting long-term prospects of bio-LNG, and particularly renewable synthetic LNG, as mainstream marine fuel molecules.

“In alignment with our net zero commitments by 2050, we view fossil-based LNG as a fuel in transition, and fully expect bio and renewable synthetic LNG to be a key part of our longer-term multi-fuel strategy for deploying net zero fuels,” Darr added.

MSC is also a partner and member of the Methane Abatement in Maritime Innovation Initiative (MAMII) and the Society for Gas as a Marine Fuel (SGMF).

SEA-LNG says bio-LNG, produced from sustainable biomass feedstocks such as human or agricultural waste that does not compete with the production of “food, fibre or fodder”, is now available in almost 70 ports worldwide including Singapore, Rotterdam and the U.S. East Coast.

Annual production of biomethane, from which bio-LNG is produced, is 30 million tonnes or 10 percent of maritime shipping’s total annual energy demand. Currently, 355 LNG-capable vessels can use bio-LNG as drop-in fuel without any modification and can be transported, stored and bunkered in ports using existing LNG infrastructure.

SEA-LNG claims bio-LNG can reduce GHG emissions by up to 80 percent compared to marine diesel on a full well-to-wake basis. “Depending on the method of production, bio-LNG can have net-zero or even net-negative GHG emissions on a lifecycle basis, creating immediate opportunities for vessel operators to cut GHG emissions and offering a sustainable route to decarbonisation by 2050.”

In addition to MSC, SEA-LNG members include operators K- Line, Matson, Carnival, Tote Maritime and Zim.