ISO develops international LNG bunkering standard

The international organization for standardization, ISO, released its standard for LNG bunkering as a response to increasing use of LNG as fuel. 

The organization said that although some ships in northern Europe have been using LNG as a fuel source for over a decade, the widespread use of LNG as fuel in other parts of the world would involve more parties, creating a demand for standardization of LNG bunkering operation on an international level.

As demand for LNG-fueled vessels has increased, so has the demand for LNG bunkering, so there was an urgent need for an international standard to ensure LNG bunkering operations could be conducted safely, ISO said.

The new standard, named ISO 20519, Ships and marine technology – Specification for bunkering of liquefied natural gas fuelled vessels, aims to help operators select vessel fuel providers that meet defined safety and fuel quality standards.

In recent years, the ships and vessels fuelled with LNG have become larger, transit greater distances and may bunker in a greater number of ports in different countries. As a result, the number of parties involved in LNG bunkering is growing rapidly.

“Standardizing safety practices had become necessary to ensure that, no matter where the bunkering took place, there would be a common set of requirements that were understood across the board – from LNG provider to ship personnel,” ISO said.

ISO 20519 contains requirements that are not covered by the IGC Code, the prevailing international code for the safe carriage by sea of liquefied gases in bulk, including, liquid and vapour transfer systems, operational procedures, requirement for the LNG provider to provide an LNG bunker delivery note, training and qualifications of personnel involved and the requirements for LNG facilities to meet applicable ISO standards and local codes.

“The requirements of ISO 20519 can be incorporated as a management objective into existing management programs and provide verifiable compliance,” explains Steve O’Malley, chair of the technical committee that developed the standard.

The working group that developed ISO 20519 included specialists from the maritime industry, equipment manufacturers, the Society for Gas as a Marine Fuel (SGMF), trading companies, class societies, international registries and the US Coast Guard.

The use of LNG as a vessel fuel is relatively new, so the standard will need to be brought up to date periodically to incorporate lessons learned over time and technological changes. To facilitate this, a group has been created to track LNG bunkering incidents and help identify when the standard should be updated, ISO’ statement reads.