TNO Organises Tender for Small Scale LNG Innovation Programme, The Netherlands

Since 2011 the Dutch government has been working with industry to accelerate the introduction of the environmentally friendly transport fuel LNG and this recently led to a major feat: from 1 July river shipping can fill up on LNG in the Rotterdam Seine port. The government has made 1.5 million euros available for the necessary subsequent steps. Companies are invited to subscribe with innovative ideas under the direction of TNO.

“Liquefied natural gas or LNG is natural gas in a liquid form at a temperature of 162 °C,” explains Maurice Hanegraaf, programme manager for Small-Scale LNG in the top consortium for knowledge and innovation (TKI) Gas. “That low temperature reduces the volume of the liquid by a factor of 600, enabling easy and cheap transportation and storage. But there are more benefits. Combustion produces less particulate matter and 10-20% less CO2 and other emissions. Engines powered by LNG are also quieter, which is an important gain for delivery vans, refuse and other trucks. Moreover, the laying of an LNG infrastructure strengthens the economic position of the Netherlands and makes us less dependent on oil.”

CHICKEN-AND-EGG PROBLEM

“In the light of those advantages entrepreneurs are certainly prepared to make the transition to LNG,” Hanegraaf goes on, “even if it means purchasing new trucks and converting vessels. But you can’t just put down an LNG filling station. Since LNG is a relatively unknown fuel, existing legislation must first be amended – which brings us to the chicken-and-egg problem. Until such time that there is a network of filling stations, an entrepreneur will not switch to LNG. And until such time that there are buyers of LNG, there will be no infrastructure. The National LNG Platform has been established to overcome this seemingly permanent obstacle. The platform focuses on legislation, the legal framework, incentives, support within the community and environmental management to create the conditions needed for a transition to LNG.”

50-50-500 TARGET

The platform has set the short-term 50-50-500 target, the Green Deal LNG: by 2015 at least 50 river vessels, 50 sea-going vessels and 500 trucks will use LNG. The first eighty trucks have begun using LNG already. Now that river shipping has been able to fill up on LNG in the Seine port in Rotterdam from 1 July, a major step has again been made. Hanegraaf: “To make this possible the municipality of Rotterdam had to modify the port management statutes. The port authority is now working with other port authorities from Amsterdam, Gothenburg and Antwerp, among others, to prepare international legislation. Ultimately we are concentrating on the Wadden and North Sea area and the Rotterdam-Basel Rhine link. We are faced by two situations: supplying a filling station and refuelling a vessel on the quayside. This requires certain issues to be resolved and applications to be devised.”

APPEAL

How can we prevent the freezing of the hoses used to supply sailing vessels? How can the truck driver refuel safely? How can the pressure be offset when the temperature of the LNG slowly rises? What happens if there is a collision with the hull of the vessel? What bridges and residential areas will a vessel encounter between Rotterdam and Basel? To help research and development answer these questions the government established the Small-Scale LNG Innovation Programme. “Following the success of the first tender that led to twelve projects being carried out, TNO is now organising a second round in which consortia can propose innovative projects. The programme has a budget of 1.5 million euros. The Netherlands is at the dawn of a transition to LNG. I appeal to parties that want to play a part in this to contact us.”