Titan expands deal to supply mass-balanced LBM to UECC vessels

LNG bunker supplier Titan has expanded a deal to supply mass-balanced liquified biomethane to Norwegian shipping firm United European Car Carriers' dual-fuel LNG vessels.

PHOTO: UECC's LNG dual-fuel pure car and truck carrier. UECC

The deal involves supply of mass-balanced liquified biomethane (LBM) for the remainder of 2024 and through most of next year, United European Car Carriers (UECC) said. It has not specified the timeline for the supply agreement in 2025.

Since July, over 95% of the fuel delivered to UECC’s vessels by Titan has been mass-balanced LBM.

Mass balancing is an accounting method that tracks the flow of sustainable feedstocks in the supply chain. It enables the blending of renewable and non-renewable feedstocks while maintaining an accurate tally of each type.

Titan produces LBM from bio-based feedstock such as organic waste, agricultural residue or manure and certified with International Sustainability Carbon Certification (ISCC), according to its website.

Biogas is produced through anaerobic digestion of bio-based feedstock. It must then be upgraded to bio-methane by removing CO2 before it can be used as a bunker fuel that is similar to fossil LNG. The bio-methane is also liquefied into LBM before direct use on vessels or as a blend with LNG.

LBM can function as a drop-in fuel in LNG, similar to the way biofuels can be blended with MGO or VLSFO. This means that vessels capable of running on LNG will not need modifications to run on pure LBM or LBM-LNG blends.

Titan and UECC have not specified the volume of LBM that will be supplied over the course of this agreement.

By Aparupa Mazumder

Please get in touch with comments or additional info to news@engine.online