UECC secures ‘Green Financing’ for vessels with battery hybrid LNG solution

UECC, which is jointly owned by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and Wallenius Lines, signed a contract to construct three new generation PCTCs with China Ship Building Trading Co. Ltd and Jiangnan Shipyard Group Co. Ltd.

The company secured ‘Green Financing’ from Svenska SkeppsHypotek in the amount of approximately US$70 million for the new vessels: a confirmed order of three vessels in total, with delivery scheduled from July 2021 onwards. According to the statement, securing ‘Green Financing’ makes UECC eligible for reductions in borrowing cost.

UECC CEO, Glenn Edvardsen, said: “This is a giant leap towards decarbonisation, and unlike anything else that has been done previously in our industry, I believe, and something that we are extremely proud of.”

Each vessel will be 169 m long, 28 m wide, and have a car carrying capacity of 3600 units on 10 cargo decks, of which two decks are hoistable. UECC claims that this will make the vessels extremely flexible, allowing them to accommodate a variety of high and heavy and break-bulk mafi cargoes, which are cargo segments, in addition to the cars, that UECC has built a significant portfolio of over the years. The vessels will have a quarter ramp of 160 metric t safe working load and a side ramp of 20 metric t safe working load and can accommodate cargo units up to 5.2 m high.

In order to ensure the environmental footprint is significantly reduced, UECC, Jiangnan Shipyard and leading ship Designer Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI) will construct the PCTCs according to some of the most innovative and the latest energy efficiency criteria. The vessels will meet the Tier 3 IMO NO_x emission limitations coming into force the Baltic and the North Sea from 2021. In respect of the 2021 CO₂ reduction regulations, the vessels will also be equipped with dual-fuel LNG engines for main propulsion and auxiliaries.

UECC’s Head of Ship Management, Jan Thore Foss, said: “UECC's experience with LNG PCTCs has been very good and there was really no other alternative for us. The LNG solution will reduce the CO₂ emission by about 25%.”

To make the vessels even more environmentally friendly and to cut CO₂ emissions further, the vessels will also be equipped with battery packages. “We are investing in the future,” Edvardsen said. “Our solution will take us beyond IMO’s target for a 40% reduction in carbon intensity by 2030.”

As more bio fuels are set to become commercially available in the future, UECC claims that it is also planning to also use carbon neutral and synthetic fuels as part of its future fuel mix. “In our strategy we take a long-term view,” said Edvardsen, “and that's why we go for a battery hybrid LNG fuel solution on our new buildings.”

Edvardsen concluded: “UECC has again taken leadership, and responded to future environmental regulations and market demands, with technological innovation, quality and sustainability and we will continue to do so. Furthermore, we will exceed current and future environmental regulations.”

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/liquid-natural-gas/02122019/uecc-secures-green-financing-for-vessels-with-battery-hybrid-lng-solution/