Tender launched for methanol bunker barge design in Seattle-Tacoma

The submission deadline for Request for Proposals (RFPs) for the barge design is set for 1 June 2026.

IMAGE: Stack of blue methanol drums. Getty Images.

Maritime Blue, in collaboration with the Port of Seattle, Port of Tacoma, Northwest Seaport Alliance, and classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), has invited RFPs from naval architecture firms to develop a conceptual design for a methanol bunker barge.

The project partners are seeking designs for a bunker barge with an expected methanol carrying capacity of approximately 30,000 bbls, although bidders may propose alternative capacities.

The bunker barge is intended solely for the transport and transfer of methanol as a fuel. The design should not include any onboard fuel conversion or green fuel production capabilities.

The barge will serve as the supplying vessel in a ship-to-ship methanol bunkering exercise during an assessment workshop scheduled for September 2026.

By Gautamee Hazarika

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