Removing barriers to the use of natural gas as maritime transportation fuel

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been used as fuel for ships for decades but quality standards are still under development. The UNECE Group of Experts on Gas created in 2015 a task force on removing barriers to the use of natural gas as a transportation fuel. This report summarises the findings to date on the main barriers to the use of gas in maritime transportation. It considered not only gas-fuelled ships, but the supply chain as well. The report demonstrates that in order to allow the use of LNG as marine fuel to grow, six key enablers need to be in place: 1) easy access to LNG, 2) reliable and safe logistics, 3) legal certainty, 4) favourable investment climate, 5) competence, knowledge and skills, and 6) public acceptance.