OCI and Unibarge to deploy methanol bunker barge in Rotterdam

Dutch chemical company OCI and logistics firm Unibarge have teamed up to retrofit a dual-fuel bunker barge to both deliver and run on green methanol by 2024.

PHOTO: Chicago, a barge from Unibarge’s fleet, sailing in inland waterways. Unibarge

The barge will be retrofitted by Unibarge and chartered to OCI on a long-term contract.

The retrofitted barge will be capable of running on green methanol and conventional biofuels. The green methanol will be produced from “renewable natural gas from digesters, landfill, cellulosic biomass waste.”

The vessel will be deployed in the Port of Rotterdam’s inland waterways in the second half of 2024. OCI HyFuels, an unit of OCI, will use the barge to transport and deliver green methanol to ocean-going vessels.

By consuming green methanol, the vessel’s particulate emissions can be cut by 90%, the companies claim.

OCI Methanol’s chief executive Bashir Lebada intends to create “a unique offer in Europe with this emission-free and dual-use barge, which both runs on and delivers our green methanol.”

“Methanol as a marine fuel has been established in the ocean going fleet for close to a decade, whereas the inland fleet is lagging. This innovative project demonstrates the viability of green methanol for the existing inland fleet, providing an option to extend the lifetime of existing assets while decarbonizing our inland waterways,” Lebada added.

By Tuhin Roy

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