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China obtains LNG container refueling ship with mobile tanks
Updated 07:57, 01-Feb-2023
CGTN
The LNG-powered container ship loaded with two mobile fuel tank containers on the southern stretch of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. /CGTN
The LNG-powered container ship loaded with two mobile fuel tank containers on the southern stretch of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. /CGTN

The LNG-powered container ship loaded with two mobile fuel tank containers on the southern stretch of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. /CGTN

China has acquired a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) container refueling ship with mobile tanks, making it a new mode of ship refueling.

With these tank containers, the two 5,000-tonne LNG-powered container ships on Tuesday set sail on the southern stretch of the Grand Canal, which connects Beijing and Hangzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province.

The refueling  is like replacing batteries in a new energy vehicle, said Miao Xiaochao, a project leader at the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, adding that this mode was used for the first time in China.

One of the mobile fuel tank containers. /CGTN
One of the mobile fuel tank containers. /CGTN

One of the mobile fuel tank containers. /CGTN

The whole process takes only 15 to 30 minutes, which is 60 to 70 percent shorter than the traditional way of filling through the pipeline, said Miao.

The container ships were each equipped with two mobile LNG fuel tanks the size of standard containers. Each fuel tank contains 17 tonnes of LNG. 

The ships can travel the entire Grand Canal without refueling, according to Miao.

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