By Robert A. Emmanuel
As Latin American and Caribbean ports prepare to adopt new approaches to reduce the carbon footprint of ships, the CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Port Authority expects that the country’s move to establish an LNG fuel terminal will give it a significant marketing advantage in the region.
Darwin Telemaque was speaking to Observer media during the 8th Annual Latin America Port Forum in Panama City which he attended last week.
The forum brought together port authority executives, terminal operators, infrastructure companies, financial institutions and other stakeholders in the port industry who were “interested in the potential for project development and new business opportunities related to investments and the evolving industry landscape.”
Telemaque who is also the Chairman of the Port Management Association of the Caribbean, was one of the main speakers at the event, and shared some of the discussions held at the two-day event.
“In the light of the various regulations that are coming out due to the impact of climate change, the [International Maritime Organization] has brought out some regulations with relation to cleaner fuels and they are also bringing out regulations as it relates to the CII [Carbon Intensity Indicator] index of ships.
“That means the region has to come up with solutions for providing clean fuel for vessels and being that Antigua and Barbuda is the only island within Eastern Caribbean sub-region who is now able to produce LNG, we are going to present that as a solution to the Caribbean,” he said.
With the arrival of the four LNG storage tanks and work continuing on the Crabb’s Fuel Terminal, government officials in Antigua and Barbuda have expressed optimism that the island will not only see a boost in jobs, but reduce its reliance on fossil fuels for energy.
“We have been meeting with a number of LNG players; I have been connecting them with Caribbean LNG in Antigua and they are speaking about supplies, collaboration, expanding what is happening there.
“No doubt as the regulations demand that ships alter what they use and those ships serve us—both cruise ships and cargo—having the necessary capacity to deliver that type of fuel to those vessels is critical,” he said.
Earlier this year, the IMO adopted the Strategy on Reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) Emission from Ships, with enhanced targets to tackle harmful emissions.
According to the IMO website, elements of the strategy include reduction of the carbon intensity of ships through improving the energy efficiency of vessels, reducing carbon dioxide emissions per transport work by at least 40 percent.
Some of the topics at last week’s port conference included port infrastructure, productivity and energy terminals.
LNG, or liquefied natural gas, has been faced with a series of concerns from environmental groups regarding whether it is environmentally friendly.
The Centre for LNG suggested that while its “impact has been largely positive over the last two decades” in lowered emissions and improved air quality, natural gas does have an environmental footprint, as it is still made up primarily of methane.
According to German company MAN Energy Solutions, methane has a greenhouse effect roughly 28 times as strong as an equivalent amount of Co2(over a 100-year timespan), which means that a potential methane slip—an event whereby gaseous methane escapes into the atmosphere—needs to be tightly controlled in order to make the fuel more environmentally friendly than heavy fuel alternatives.
“We believe that the LNG option is globally acceptable; it is far more compatible with meeting the objectives of the IMO and the international community.
“There are many ships who are outfitting their engines with LNG only, and those vessels will now have a home where they can refuel and that’s something, I think, will place Antigua at a significant competitive advantage,” the country’s port manager stated.