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Position #3 December 2018
Push for greener production and healthier seas
With frequent shipments of dry bulk goods
between Oxelösund, Luleå and Brahestad
(Raahe) in Finland, SSAB is a committed
and significant player in the project.
M/S Viikki and M/S Haaga, owned by
Finnish company ESL Shipping, were built
at a shipyard in China and completed at
the end of the summer. For M/S Viikki, the
journey homewards was via the famous
Northeast Passage.
“The route in the North Sea is safe for only
a couple of months in the early autumn,”
says Mikki Koskinen, CEO of ESL Shipping.
“In return, we saved three weeks’ travel
time compared to other routes — and up to
60% emissions, thanks to LNG operations.”
Technology with a view
M/S Viikki is 160 metres long and 26
metres wide. The ship is clean, neat and
functional throughout, and life on board
is characterised by safety and well-being
for all. The ship houses a gym and, as it’s
a Finnish ship, there is also a sauna of
course. From the bridge, the view ahead
is striking. The three load hatches have a
unique construction — they are advanced,
yet easy to handle, to minimize port time as
much as possible.
“From the bridge we take care of the entire
vessel,” says Kari Levander, captain and
commander of M/S Viikki. “It’s airy, easily
accessible, well thought out and all systems
are designed to work optimally together.”
A positive step towards
cleaner seas
Anne Lexelius is purchasing manager for
raw materials at SSAB and is also M/S
Viikki’s godmother.
“M/S Viikki and ELS Shipping’s invest-
ment is a very important part of our efforts
to reduce our CO2 emissions. We are
pleased that we can also contribute to
environmentally friendly shipping in the
Baltic Sea through our conversion to
greener production methods.”
Douglas Heilborn, from the Port of Ox-
elösund, summarises the background:
“Traditional steel production leads to
very high carbon dioxide emissions. At
the same time, shipping and industry
have very high demands on reducing
emissions. Because of this, the transition
to LNG, liquefied natural gas, is absolutely
right for both SSAB and us.”
Maritime transport’s whole green shift is
part of the Bothnia Bulk project, which
is partially-funded by the EU and aims to
halve CO
2
emissions in the Baltic Sea.
SSAB and the Port of Oxelösund have
taken a very important step together
towards reducing carbon dioxide emis-
sions. In a few years, SSAB will turn to
new, more environmentally friendly arc
technology and will then need LNG in
its production. But M/S Viikki and M/S
Haaga, the world’s first LNG-powered dry
cargo vessel, are already in operation.
Photo: Bobo Lindblad
What is LNG?
LNG, Liquefied Natural Gas or liquid
methane, is a natural gas that has been
transformed into a liquid form. LNG does
not emit sulphur particles, has minimal
emissions of nitrogen oxides, and has
50% lower carbon dioxide emissions
than conventional fuels. In addition, if
you use renewable LBG, that is liquid
biogas, the transition to green fuels
becomes even more meaningful.
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2018-12-04 14:57