World's First LNG Pure Car & Truck Carrier

As reported earlier, United European Car Carriers (UECC), jointly owned by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and Wallenius Lines, has signed a contract to construct two dual fuel LNG PCTCs with 1A Super Finnish/Swedish ice class.

The world’s first LNG dual fuel PCTC vessel has been delivered to UECC after 380 days of hard work put in by UECC personnel, Wallenius personnel, NYK personnel, KHI and NACKS. A formal delivery ceremony took place at the NACKS shipyard in Nantong, China and the vessel was successfully delivered to UECC.

Participants at the ceremony were personnel from the UECC Oslo office, UECC Site office in Nantong, Lloyds, NACKS and KHI. We were also honored to have NYK and Wallenius personnel attending the ceremony.

At 181 meters, with a 30 meter beam, TBN AUTO ECO is the largest dual-fuel PCTC in the world, and the biggest ever PCTC with 1A super Finnish/Swedish ice class. She is capable of running on LNG fuel or heavy fuel oil and marine gas oil, combining cleaner operations with greater flexibility and efficiency.

One of the most technically advanced PCTC’s ever built, TBN AUTO ECO is able to complete a fourteen day round voyage in the Baltic using solely LNG fuel.

Boasting a capacity of approximately 4000 RT42 car units, including 6000 sqm of high and heavy cargo, TBN AUTO ECO has the capability to load cargo on 10 decks with a maximum cargo weight of 160MT.

During the ceremony, Mr. Glenn Edvardsen, CEO of UECC, began his speech with, “We at UECC are very proud of the ship which NACKS has built for us. We look forward to show the world and the shipping industry that we are the game changer with the addition of this marvellous advanced PCTC with LNG Dual Fuel Technology. We realize the importance of this ship to KHI/NACKS given the fact that it was not only yours, but the first in the world LNG Fuelled PCTC ever built. We sincerely thank NACKS for all the hard work for the past year, and UECC will continue to maintain our reputation as the leading provider of short sea RoRo transportation in Europe!”

Mr. Han Chengmin, President of NACKS stated: “NACKS is always committed to constructing high-quality, environmental-friendly ships with dual-fuel propulsion systems. The 10-deck PCTCs will operate using LNG, heavy fuel oil or marine gas oil, to maximise flexibility and efficiency, and the LNG capacity has been calculated to give the vessel a two-week round trip inside the ECA.”

David Barrow, LR’s Director of Innovation, Marketing & Sales, commented: “It is a great honour to have been chosen to class the ships in this project – a continuation of our strong relationship with NACKS and UECC, and a milestone for all parties involved. We will keep sharing our understanding of marine risk and realities of LNG as a marine fuel, providing the highest level of expertise and experience to help the industry make the best commercial decisions based on the best technical insight.”

With the additional of TBN AUTO ECO to the family, UECC not only strengthens its market position, but also assumes the role of a technological pioneer through the characteristics of this unique vessel.

The TBN AUTO ECO is scheduled to have a Naming Ceremony in late November 2016 in Zeebrugge.