Waves Group appoints an LNG specialist

Waves Group, an offshore marine and engineering consultancy company, is expanding its team by adding Kenneth English, an LNG specialist and class one marine engineer.

English is a chartered engineer with over 20 years of experience working within the maritime sector, predominantly in LNG. He is a member of the Institute of marine and electrical service technicians and holds a Class one engineering certificate of competency.

He worked for BP for over 23 years. His experience spans from LNG vessel newbuilds, dry dockings and management to LNG ship/shore compatibility studies (SSCS), optimoor feasibility studies, LNG inspections, obsolescence management, gas engines both DFDE and MEGI, fuel gas supply system management, and LNG tank repairs, plus marine support to sales and purchase agreements. English has managed and led LNG vessel dry dockings with multi-million-dollar budget responsibility.

With the ongoing development of the LNG shipping sector and use of LNG as a marine fuel (the recent launch of ultra-large LNG powered container ships, offshore construction vessels and LNG cruise ships), 2020 saw the initiation of the IMO 0.5 per cent Sulphur Cap and a gradual shift to the use of LNG as a more cost-effective alternative.

However, there are associated risks to design, build and operate gas-fuelled vessels in a safe and sustainable way. These include the high energy content of LNG tanks, explosion hazards in case of gas leakage, extremely low temperatures of the LNG cargo and fuel, hazardous versus non-hazardous cargo spaces and inexperienced crew who are unused to working with LNG.

Necessary safety measures should be taken with regard to public safety and risk mitigation when using LNG as the fuel source. To minimise the risk and increase the cost-benefit the help of an experienced LNG specialist is needed from the initial design stage through to any incident response management, as stated by Waves Group.

The addition of Kenneth English to Waves’ team of marine engineers strengthens the company’s ability to provide the essential LNG experience and increases the LNG casualty response expertise even further.