Crowley, a major port construction and logistics company, supplies LNG to many of the islands in the Caribbean region.
PHILIPSBURG--The Government of St. Maarten is considering reducing the dependence on heavy fuel oil for power production and switching to less expensive natural gas. The Council of Ministers received three representatives of Ontario-based Canadian Global Investment Ltd. last Thursday to listen to a proposal to power St. Maarten using liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Puerto Rico.
According to the investors, the proposal comes at an opportune time. Tough new rules on marine fuel are forcing shipowners to explore liquefied natural gas as a cleaner alternative. Although still a fossil fuel, LNG emits 10 to 20 per cent less carbon dioxide (CO2) than even low-sulphur fuel oil. The International Maritime Organization rules ban ships from using fuels with a sulphur content above 0.5 per cent unless they are equipped to clean up sulphur emissions.
United States (US) cruise ships have started to switch to cleaner-burning LNG. The first passenger ship to employ LNG was AIDAnova, which debuted in 2018. Since then, more than 20 additional LNG ships have been announced. The construction of Icon of the Seas, Royal Caribbean International’s first LNG-powered cruise vessel, started last month.
The use of LNG in cruise ships will slash harmful pollution from the ships and help the industry meet new global environmental standards and lower fuel cost, according to Florida port authorities and the Cruise Line International Association.
“LNG is a stable gas that is neither toxic nor corrosive and is lighter than air. It is the cleanest fossil fuel available, netting a 100 per cent reduction in sulphur oxide (SOx) and particulate matter (PM), and a 92 per cent reduction in nitrogen oxide (NOx),” according to Crowley Maritime, which transports LNG from the US mainland to Puerto Rico.
Canadian Global Investment Ltd. has been looking at St. Maarten for seven years now for investing in infrastructure to supply LNG to ships. The investment group partners with Crowley and Siemens, with the ambition to realize an LNG fueling station for cruise ships and cargo ships in St Maarten. “St. Maarten will have the third fueling station in the Caribbean region, after Yucatan near Cancun, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.”
The Canadian company is also looking to establish itself in St. Maarten and invest in an LNG-fuelled power generation system for the island.
“Cole Bay is the perfect location for our proposed power platform,” said Andre Reid on behalf of Canadian Global Investment Ltd.
“Our proposal involves the construction of a liquefied natural gas turbine-fired ORC [organic Rankine Cycle – Ed.] power generation system located in Cole Bay across from GEBE NV. The system will consist of natural-gas-fired turbines and organic Rankine Cycle turbines.
“The latter are turbines which use a fluid that has a much lower boiling point to create liquidation vapour than traditional water steam turbines. The fluid is captured and recycled so it does not create any significant environmental impact.”
The turbines and engineering for the electrical power plant would be supplied by Siemens. “A breakwater will also be built so that the facility will be able to withstand a direct hit from any hurricane and storm surge,” Reid explained.
The LNG platform itself would be constructed by Crowley, a major port construction and logistics company, which has a large presence in the Caribbean and Central and South America. “It is already supplying LNG to many of the islands in the Caribbean region,” said Reid.
The total investment on the part of Canadian Global Investment Ltd. is estimated at $100 million. The investors want to enter into a partnership with the government of St. Maarten for at least 25 years.
Reid: “The goal is to provide the island with constant reliable power even in bad weather. Our group is proposing to supply electricity to the public electrical utility at a rate of 17.5 cents USD [US dollars] per kilowatt hour. Our research indicates that this is 33 per cent less than what is charged to the 20,000 consumers at the moment.”
The price will be fixed for a period of five years, Reid says. “We will continue to lock in any new rates for five-year intervals, for a period of 20 years. This will provide the country with reliable and affordable power which the country can rely on to create an economic basis for future growth and prosperity. “
In anticipation of how this can be guaranteed, Reid said: “Our system will be expandable, so our power generation will be able to grow to meet the growing needs of the country.”
