People’s Network Xiamen, November 7 (Yu Naiwu) Xiamen Port has taken another new step in its transition towards a green port. On the 7th, following the successful completion of Fujian Province’s first ship refueling with marine biofuel over a year ago, Xiamen Port welcomed its first bonded liquefied natural gas (LNG) “ship-to-ship” refueling operation for an international voyage vessel. This also signifies that Xiamen Port has developed a multi-level clean energy supply capability of “biofuel + LNG”, making its green port service system more comprehensive.
At around 11:30 AM that day at Xiamen Port’s Songyu Container Terminal, the vessel “Hai Yang Shi You 301” slowly approached the “MSC Daliya” berthed at the dock; at around 11:50 AM, as the receiving vessel sounded a long blast of its whistle, the “ship-to-ship” refueling operation began.
“Ship-to-ship” refueling operation. Photo provided by the organizer.
“This operation will involve refueling approximately 2000 cubic meters of bonded LNG, and the entire operation will take about seven to eight hours,” introduced the person in charge of CNOOC Fujian New Energy Company. LNG is a clean ship fuel that is technologically mature and practically feasible, and is currently being rapidly promoted worldwide. Conducting bonded LNG refueling business in Xiamen Port not only helps save tax costs for relevant shipping companies but also contributes to the construction of Xiamen as a green port.
Staff explained that in terms of environmental benefits, using LNG as a ship power fuel can significantly reduce pollutant emissions such as carbon dioxide and sulfur oxides, which is of great significance for promoting the shipping industry’s implementation of the “dual carbon” goals and accelerating the green and low-carbon transition. After Xiamen Port successively acquired the capabilities for bonded biofuel and bonded LNG refueling, it can better meet the refueling demands of international voyage vessels for clean fuels, further enhance the port’s attractiveness and service capacity for international voyage vessels, and inject strong green momentum for improving comprehensive international shipping competitiveness.
It is reported that the successful landing and smooth implementation of this first bonded LNG ship refueling benefited from the joint efforts of Xiamen Port and relevant regulatory authorities, related enterprises, forward-looking policy guidance, and adequate safety guarantees. Staff from the Xiamen Port Authority introduced that this successful breakthrough in the bonded LNG refueling business is an important achievement for Xiamen Port in practicing the “Green Moving Xiamen Bay” initiative and promoting green port construction – in recent years, from the full coverage of shore power for five types of specialized terminals, to bonded biofuel refueling, and then to the first bonded LNG refueling; from the first purely electric sea tourism passenger ship breaking waves, to being selected as a national-level zero-carbon pilot, Xiamen Port has continuously improved its green service portfolio, committed to enhancing international shipping competitiveness.
“The successful landing of the first bonded LNG refueling not only fills the gap in Xiamen Port’s clean fuel refueling field but also marks Xiamen Port’s official entry into the ranks of the few domestic ports capable of bonded LNG refueling,” introduced Ren Guoyan, Director of the Xiamen Port Authority. As an important international shipping center on the southeast coast, green development has always been the most distinctive feature of Xiamen Port. This first bonded LNG refueling is a major breakthrough for Xiamen Port and also means Xiamen Port has taken another important step towards its transition to a green port. In the future, Xiamen Port will use the deepening of the “Green Moving Xiamen Bay” three-year action as a guide, focusing efforts in three main directions: Among them, in improving infrastructure support, it will combine port development plans to promote the upgrade and renovation of LNG refueling-related berths, enhancing refueling service guarantee capabilities; in deepening process efficiency improvement, it will continuously optimize the bonded LNG refueling operation process, enhance the operational efficiency of refueling operations, and promote the normalization of the business; in expanding clean energy varieties, it will actively layout new clean fuels such as green methanol and green ammonia, exploring the construction of a more diverse and open clean energy supply system.
Ren Guoyan stated that in the ongoing formulation of Xiamen Port’s “16th Five-Year Plan”, the development of the green port is an important chapter. Next, Xiamen Port will take this first bonded LNG refueling as a new opportunity, promote the normalization of bonded LNG refueling business, strive to make it bigger and stronger and form a scale, and while assisting the green port development of Xiamen Port, focus on introducing new energy industries to help Xiamen’s green industry development go further; continuously optimize the port business environment, deepen green port construction, and fully build a green, smart, and efficient world-class port, helping Xiamen Port further consolidate its status as an international container trunk hub port, and contributing “Xiamen strength” to the global shipping industry’s green and low-carbon transition.
