Ports Turn to Natural Gas in Quest for Cleaner Marine Fuel
- UN decision sets a new curb on sulfur in ship fuel in 2020
- Vancouver, Los Angeles, Tacoma eye role providing LNG option
A cargo ship is unloaded at the Port of Vancouver terminal.
Photographer: Ben Nelms/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The tightening of emissions limits for deep-water ships has some of North America’s busiest ports chasing a new opportunity.
The UN’s International Maritime Organization last year cut limits on sulfur in marine fuels to 0.5 percent from 3.5 percent, starting in 2020. The target: So-called bunker fuel, a cheap, tar-like oil residue used by most ships. Now ports in Vancouver, Los Angeles and Tacoma are all studying whether they can profit from supplying liquefied natural gas, which emits virtually no sulfur, as a cleaner alternative fuel that’s almost as cheap.