High-speed LNG bunkering with uninterrupted flow

Was one of the first questions that came up when Naturgy (Formerly Gas Natural Fenosa) approached MAKEEN Energy's division for liquefied natural gas (LNG) solutions, in 2017. They faced a challenge: delivering LNG to ships from a large number of tank trailers in a short time span.

The solution had to be compact enough that it could be moved between locations and enable Naturgy to respond to their customers' LNG bunkering needs swiftly. We went to work, and we engineered the solution: The Multiple Truck-To-Ship bunkering unit (MTTS).

Ensures constant truck-to-ship bunkering

On the outside, the MTTS looks like a standard 40-foot cargo container. Open it up, however, and you find a complete LNG bunkering setup with 3 pumps and enough hose connections to allow bunkering from 3 to 6 trucks at once.

To maintain an uninterrupted flow of LNG and minimise the traffic of trucks going to and from the manifold, Naturgy can bunker from 3 trucks while another 3 trucks are in waiting position. Once the first 3 trucks are empty, the other 3 can take over while the empty trucks are replaced. This process repeats until the ship is full – with no interruptions and minimal evaporation of gas.

Autonomous and self-sustaining

Since the system would not always have access to power and utilities at the dock, Naturgy wanted a solution that included all these things on its own. For that, it has a separate container to house a generator (powered by diesel or compressed natural gas) and system controls. In short, it contains all of the things that need to be located outside of the explosion hazardous area, allowing the system to run safely and autonomously.