The bay of Málaga has become a key location for the refueling of liquefied natural gas (GNL) for large vessels. The President of the Port Authority, Carlos Rubio, described the operation as an "absolute success" and emphasized that the port is a "pioneer" in this type of supply, which offers a more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional heavy fuel oil.
Following a year of operations within the port, the significant development is the first-ever open-sea refueling conducted last weekend. Rubio guaranteed the "complete safety" of the operation, stressing that the authorization process by the Maritime Captaincy was "exhaustive and demanding." According to the president, Málaga's bay is a "suitable, optimal" and "very protected" location, making "it completely impossible to have spills" of gas, as any leakage would dissipate into the atmosphere, unlike fossil fuels.
The inaugural operations involved two large container ships from the MSC company. On Saturday the 13th, the vessel MSC Audrey received 2,300 tons of LNG from the tanker ship New Frontier1. The following day, the MSC Virginia, which had been docked at the number nine quay terminal, refueled with 3,000 tons of LNG supplied by the tanker Alice Cosulich.
Rubio noted that the port's capability to conduct these operations "is an extra attraction" for "the most important and innovative shipping companies," such as MSC, Maersk, or Cosco. These companies, leaders in annual container throughput, are also at the forefront of fleet innovation, adapting a significant portion of their vessels to LNG as a "transition fuel" in the absence of fully decarbonized solutions for maritime transport.
The President of the Port Authority confirmed that "other operations are already scheduled," following the success of this "acid test." The option to refuel in the bay opens up new possibilities for large container ships and other vessel types, complementing the continuous supply already provided to ships docked at the container terminal and the east quay.
