• 20 Sep 2016

Cepsa has released a statement claiming that it will supply LNG to ships through Europe’s first multi-product barge. The supply vessel will be capable of providing a variety of marine fuels, including diesels and LNG. Cepsa will participate in both the design and construction of the vessel, alongside its strategic business partner, Flota Suardíaz.

The first barge will commence operations from the port of Barcelona in 2018. The company will become the first supplier of LNG through a multi-product barge in Spain, whilst Barcelona will also become the first Southern European port to offer it.

The project is part of the Core LNGas hive initiative, which was selected by the European Commission (EC) and will develop an LNG logistics network to promote the use of gas as fuel for transport, particularly in the marine environment. Coordinated by Enagas, the project  has 42 partners in Spain and Portugal, including Cepsa.

Alberto Martínez-Lacaci, Cepsa’s Bunker Director, said: “Our customers will benefit from the great flexibility that the barge will give, supplying all types of fuel from standard fuels to the most innovative, taking us a step ahead of the change in European regulations.

“Cepsa is a bunker leader in Spain and supplies marine fuels in other important international ports such as Fujairah and Panama, so it had to be involved in this project. We are convinced that it will open a new chapter in the European bunkering market, whose future will be closely tied to the use of lower emitting fuels such as LNG.”