• 15 Feb 2017

The world’s second dual-fuel LNG pure car and truck carrier Auto Energy had her formal naming ceremony at Malmo port, Sweden earlier this week. The ship's Norway-based owner United European Car Carriers (UECC), a joint venture by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and Wallenius Lines.

The ship Auto Energy, built to Super 1A Finnish /Swedish ice class standard thus allowing it for full-year trading in the Baltic area, where ice is common in winter.

It is the second of two sister ships, the other Auto Eco having been named on November  2016 at Zeebrugge, Belgium. They are the first two dual-fuel LNG Pure Car and Truck Carriers (PCTC) ever built and able to complete a 14-day round-trip voyage solely on LNG without refuelling and to comply with sulphur regulations.

 "UECC will always be appreciated for being a key actor in the industry with an important role to achieve a low-carbon and an energy-efficient maritime future," said Dr Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, President of the World Maritime University based in Malmo, at the ceremony.

Johan Rostin, CEO of Copenhagen Malmo Port, said that UECC's launch of two LNG-powered ships in a short space of time was positive for the Baltic region as a whole as it would significantly reduce emissions.

With a fleet of more than 20 purpose-built vessels, UECC transports the equivalent of 1.7mn cars annually and operates terminals in key European ports. The firm formally took delivery of Auto Energy on last november at the COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) shipyard in Nantong, China.