Newbuild: Methanol as ship fuel

The world’s largest methanol supplier, Canada’s Methanex Corporation, through its Waterfront Shipping subsidiary, has reached an agreement with Japan’s Mitsui OSK Lines, Norway’s Westfal-Larsen & Co (WL) and Sweden’s Marinvest/Skagerack for six new 50,000dwt methanol carriers to be built by South Korea’s Hyundai Mipo Dockyard and Japan’s Minaminippon Shipbuilding Company. The ships will run on a blend of 95 per cent methanol and five per cent diesel fuel using MAN ME-LGI flex-fuel engines capable of running on methanol, fuel oil, marine diesel or gas oil. JS