Down at Quonset Point, something happened last week that folks who watch the harbor traffic at Davisville have been waiting to see for a while. REV LNG, a US supplier of liquefied natural gas for ships, completed the first LNG bunkering operation ever done at the Port of Davisville, fueling the Aristotle, a car carrier operated by Siem Car Carriers.
The Aristotle runs on dual fuel and can burn LNG instead of traditional marine fuel. It is part of Siem's Atlantic service, the route that keeps vehicles moving across the ocean to and from ports like ours. The fueling was done truck-to-ship, meaning tanker trucks pulled up alongside the vessel and transferred the fuel directly rather than using a dedicated bunkering vessel. REV LNG says this was also the first time a car carrier has been fueled with LNG anywhere in the US Northeast.
The company has not said how much LNG went into the Aristotle's tanks. What it has said is that this delivery marks the start of an ongoing partnership between REV LNG and Siem, with REV LNG now set to supply LNG to Siem's ships across the Northeast going forward.
What it means for residents
For anyone who lives near Davisville or drives past Quonset Point on a regular basis, this is worth paying attention to. LNG burns cleaner than the heavy fuel oil that many large cargo ships still rely on, so a shift toward LNG bunkering at our port could mean fewer emissions from the ships that call here. It also signals that Davisville is being positioned as a stop for cleaner-burning vessels moving through the region, which could bring more shipping traffic and business to the port over time.
As someone who lives right here in this community and keeps an eye on what happens at our waterfront, not just what tourists might notice passing through, I think it is worth watching whether this becomes a regular occurrence or stays a one-off. A single bunkering operation does not change the port overnight, but a partnership that keeps bringing LNG-fueled ships back to Davisville could shape how the port grows in the years ahead.
REV LNG has not announced a schedule for future deliveries to Siem vessels, so there is no confirmed date yet for the next one. For now, this first operation stands as a marker that Rhode Island's port has entered the LNG bunkering business.
Source: https://www.engine.online/
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