Ready, steady, LN-Go
Hapag-Lloyd is implementing the world’s first conversion of a large containership to LNG. The line aims to pave the way for ships to become more friendly towards the environment.
Hapag-Lloyd has held back for a long time when it comes to liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a fuel. In November 2017 the French shipping company CMA CGM had already announced the construction of nine 22,000 teu containerships with LNG propulsion – a premiere for ships of this size. Hapag-Lloyd’s merger with the United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) brought 17 containerships that are ‘LNG-ready’ into the firm; thus the line decided at the beginning of this year to convert one of these freighters instead – at least as a first step.
“Our conversion of the Sajir makes us the first shipping company worldwide to convert a containership of this size to LNG propulsion,” as Hapag-Lloyd’s managing director for fleet management, Richard von Berlepsch, said recently. The reason is that “in the short as well as in the medium term, LNG is the best solution to reduce CO2 emissions,” according to the chief operating officer of Hapag-Lloyd, Anthony J. Firmin. LNG propulsion can reduce the emissions of a 20,000 teu unit by around 30%, the company says. The exact extent of the savings made by retrofitting the Sajir will only become apparent once the project has been completed.
Demanding and expensive conversion
The fuel system and the existing heavy-fuel-burning en- gine of the 15,000 teu containership will initially be converted into a dual-fuel engine in May 2020 – an extremely demanding task. “Switching to LNG as the ship’s fuel is the equivalent of changing over from sail to steam propulsion,” as von Berlepsch emphasised. “The real magic of the project, however, lies in proving that it is possible to retrofit an existing ship.”
When ordering a newbuilding, all options are available; the Sajir, however, requires many technically-sophisticated conversion steps, as well as retrofitting measures, including for example for the main engine, auxiliary engines as well as boilers and gas valve units. To make everything work smoothly the team will have to devise some rather innovative new solutions.
In contrast to LNG newbuildings, whose tanks are under the bridge, the Sajir’s 6,700 cbm LNG tank is not far from the engine. This means that slots for 300 teu have to be done away with. On top of this it is particularly challenging to ensure that the ship’s steel hull does not become colder than –30°C on account of the presence of the liquefied natural gas tank; this has to be assured even in an emergency. Reference projects for this have not yet taken place.
The Sajir can operate with LNG and also with low-sulphur fuel oil as a back-up. A dual-fuel system does not mean “constantly switching between fuels,” as von Berlepsch explained. Rather, Hapag-Lloyd has set itself the goal of operating the Sajir 100% with LNG. However, the bunkering process and the availability of LNG still present the company with some challenges. “The approval process in Rotterdam alone took six months – for one port and one supplier,” von Berlepsch added.
In addition, the conversion is quite a cost-intensive process, involving no less than 105 days in a shipyard. Hapag-Lloyd is investing around USD 30 million in the conversion. The shipping line has not received any financial subsidies for the project. Whether the company will convert further ships to LNG “depends very much on the success of this particular pilot project”, Firmin said.
