UK classification society Lloyd’s Register (LR) and Swedish ferry company Stena Line will work together on a project to retrofit two fast roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessels with methanol propulsion.
The conversion will see the Stena Superfast VII and Stena Superfast VIII RoRo ferries, which operate on the Scotland to Northern Ireland route between Cairnryan and Belfast, converted to methanol dual-fuel propulsion with the vessels transferring class to LR.
As part of the project, the retrofit process will convert two out of the four main engines in each vessel to run on methanol alongside marine gas oil (MGO). The ship’s bunkering, storage, fuel supply and supporting systems will also be adapted for methanol.
Stena Line’s ferry Stena Germanica was converted to be capable of running on methanol in 2015. Classed by LR, Stena Germanica is the only retrofitted methanol vessel in service and will provide valuable experience for the project to convert Stena Superfast VII and Stena Superfast VIII, according to the class society.
LR’s recent Fuel for thought: Methanol for Passenger Ships report shows that methanol is increasingly technically viable for shipowners, however, infrastructure and investment need to be prioritized for widespread adoption.
