Enak Ferlemann, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, presented three subsidy notes totalling almost 29 million euros to Nordic Hamburg for the new build of two container ships and to Stena Line for the retrofitting of a RoPax ferry with an LNG drive.
Nordic Hamburg is renowned for pioneering, innovative projects in the maritime transport sector. Both subsidised 1400 TEU feeder container ships will operate in the North and Baltic seas in future. Through its sustainability strategy, Stena Line is pursuing a deliberate policy of reducing CO2 and NOx emissions. The funding will support the conversion of the “Mecklen-burg-Vorpommern” RoPax ferry to an LNG drive system. The “Mecklenburg-Vorpommern” will be deployed in scheduled service mainly on the Rostock-Trelleborg route.
The BMVI created a funding programme to advance the switch to liquified natural gas (LNG) as a less harmful fuel in maritime transport. It is financed through the Mobility and Fuel Strat-egy. LNG as a shipping fuel contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions. As opposed to conventional, oil-based shipping fuels, LNG does not cause any sulphur oxide emissions (SOx). Nitrogen oxide emissions (NOx) are reduced by up to 90 per cent compared to conventional fuels, and particle emissions by approx. 98 per cent.