AIDAprima hosts international LNG Conference
Expert forum explores the practical use of
low-emission liquefied gas on board cruise ships
As part of the international trade conference "Making
LNG Happen: Combining Forces for Sustainable Shipping," 80 leading
representatives from the fields of business, politics and science visited the
cruise ship AIDAprima in Rotterdam on Thursday, January 26, 2017. The guests
included Dirk Brengelmann, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany in the
Netherlands and his Norwegian colleague Martin Sørby.
On board of the first cruise ship in the world that
uses a dual-fuel engine to produce its energy from low-emission liquefied gas
(LNG) while docked at port, leading LNG experts from Germany, Norway and the
Netherlands informed themselves about the practical experiences of AIDA Cruises
with the use of LNG.
After the first successful test run for the LNG supply
of AIDAprima in Hamburg on May 7, 2016, the cruise ship is successfully being
provided with LNG while docked at all ports on its route – Hamburg, Rotterdam,
Le Havre, Southampton and Zeebrugge. This is a significant contribution to
environmental protection, since an AIDA ship spends about 40 percent of its
operating time in a port. Compared to using conventional marine diesel with 0.1
percent sulfur content, emissions are considerably reduced even further by
using LNG. Sulfur oxides and soot particles can be prevented completely.
Nitrogen oxide emission is reduced by up to 80 percent and CO2 emissions
are lowered by 20 percent.
"We believe in LNG as the fuel with the lowest
emissions that is currently available and have been performing pioneering work
in this area for many years. In the summer of 2015 we announced that we will be
the first cruise company worldwide to operate the ships of the next AIDA
generation – which are being built at the Meyer shipyard in Papenburg and
commissioned as of 2019 – 100 percent with LNG. We are pleased that other
cruise lines are now also following our example and have ordered new
constructions with LNG fuel as well," said Dr. Monika Griefahn, Chief Sustainable
Officer AIDA Cruises at the trade conference in Rotterdam.
"However, we also need the support of the ports and
LNG producers to invest in the necessary infrastructure," Dr. Monika Griefahn
continued.
AIDA Cruises invested in the research and testing of
applications to use LNG in cruise ships early on. We collaborated on the LNG
hybrid barge together with Becker Marine Systems in 2013 to develop and launch
an innovative and flexible solution for providing environmentally friendly
energy to the ships using liquefied gas while they are moored in the Hamburg
harbor. Since May 30, 2015, AIDAsol has been supplied with low-emission power
from liquefied gas (LNG) at the Hafencity Cruise Terminal; in 2016 alone this
included 16 arrivals.
AIDA Cruises has transparently documented its
commitment to the environment and society in its Sustainability Report "AIDA
cares" since 2007. In this report it also lists all of the relevant
environmental key figures. In addition to reducing emissions, increased efficiency
is a significant factor in eco-friendly ship operation.
The ships in the AIDA fleet only use 3 liters of fuel
on average per person on board for a 100-kilometer trip. This was already
confirmed by experts at DNV GL in an independent study in 2012. Thanks to the
use of state-of-the-art, energy-efficient environmental technologies and the
economical handling of resources, additional progress was made in 2016. For
example, nine percent less energy was used per person on board than in 2012.
During the same time period, the water consumption per person on board dropped
by 7.2 percent and the emission of carbon dioxide by 7.7 percent.
More information about the environmental commitment of
AIDA Cruises is available in the current Sustainability Report "AIDA cares
2016" at www.aida.de/aidacares.
Rostock, January 27, 2017
Issuer:
AIDA Cruises
Am Strande 3d I 18055 Rostock
Ph.: +49 (0) 381 / 444-0
Fax: + 49 (0) 381 / 444-88 88
www.aida.de
Communication:
Hansjörg Kunze
Vice President of Communication & Sustainability
Ph.: +49 (0) 381 / 444-80 20
Fax: + 49 (0) 381 / 444-80 25
presse@aida.de