FortisBC funds Seaspan Ferries’ LNG-powered newbuilds

FortisBC informed that it will provide $5 million in incentive funding toward two new vessels for Seaspan Ferries that will be able to run on liquefied natural gas.

The incentives were made possible following the creation of the Government of B.C.’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction regulation in 2012 when FortisBC announced the $62 million program for fleet operators to offset part of the cost for a natural gas engine over a diesel engine.

The funding agreement with Seaspan will result in the reduction of an estimated 5,450 metric tonnes per year of carbon emissions, the equivalent of taking more than 1,140 passenger cars off the road annually, because natural gas is cleaner burning than traditional marine diesel fuel. Seaspan has also agreed to a fuelling agreement of up to 200,000 gigajoules of LNG per year which will come from FortisBC’s Tilbury LNG facility in Delta.

In 2014, Seaspan Ferries began shipping LNG in ISO containers from FortisBC’s Tilbury facility for use by natural gas for transportation customers on Vancouver Island. The two new 150 metre ferries will accommodate up to 59 truck trailers.

To date, the incentive program has resulted in 400 natural gas vehicles on the road or vessels in the water, eliminating 38,000 metric tonnes of carbon emissions annually, the equivalent of taking 8,000 vehicles off the road each year. To date, FortisBC has signed agreements for $28 million in incentive funding for land vehicles and marine vessels.

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Press Release; Image: Seaspan Ferries