“We deliver our customer products from A to Z in accordance to their standards and their specific product requirements in the most environmentally friendly and safe manner possible. Because this concept is built up on a modular basis, shippers, and barge operators can pick and choose. For example, we can provide the vessel including crew for one client, but just a financing arrangement for another, while handling all for a third client. We can tailor the concept to the customer’s exact requirements,” said Rob Schuurmans, director of Bodewes Binnenvaart.
Although the LNG/ACES system can be fitted to any inland ship, at the moment it has been designed around a 110 m long vessel, the EcoLiner, which is based on the well-known Damen River Liner 1145. It has a bunker capacity of approximately 45 cu m LNG and it will be fully classified by Bureau Veritas. Extensive trials have proven that fuel savings of around 25% can be realized on the EcoLiner.
The partners are already exploring markets in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands and have received a positive response worldwide from leading shippers and barge companies. Moreover, they are going further afield in Brazil, China and India. “We want to change the market. This is an innovative, safe, environmentally friendly and extremely cost competitive concept. There is no reason why it cannot be the inland shipping industry standard for the future,” they said.
Source: Damen Shipyards Group
