LR and Cargill spearhead a methanol-ready bulk carrier design

Classification society Lloyd's Register (LR) and dry bulk operator Cargill International have teamed up to design a methanol-ready bulk carrier concept.

PHOTO: Concept design of a methanol-ready Kamsarmax bulk carrier vessel. Lloyd's Register

Ship management firm Minerva Dry and Chinese shipyard Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) will also assist in designing the vessel. NACKS is a joint venture between China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO) and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

The vessel will initially run on conventional fuel, Mingfeng Lu, technical director at Chinese shipyard NACKS said. However, it will be designed in a way that prepares the bulk carrier for future retrofits to run on methanol.

Additionally, it will have rotor sail capability to enable wind-assisted propulsion in the future.

“Rather than starting with a conventional fuelled design and adding on some limited 'readiness' we essentially designed a methanol fuelled ship first, and worked backwards from there for the methanol-ready version. The result is a design that is truly ready and feasible for conversion,” said Chris Hughes, decarbonisation specialist at Cargill International.

By Konica Bhatt

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