UECC to Exceed IMO 2030 Climate Goal With LNG Hybrid Vessels

United European Car Carriers (UECC) has signed a contract to build two new hybrid-powered, LNG-fueled PCTCs with China Ship Building Trading and Jiangnan Shipyard. The new ships will be equipped with a battery hybrid LNG propulsion system which will place UECC beyond IMO’s target for a 40 percent reduction in carbon intensity by 2030. The contract has options for two additional vessels, and the first vessel is planned for delivery in 2021.

“This is a giant leap towards decarbonization, and unlike anything else that has been done previously in our industry, I believe, and something that we are extremely proud of,” said UECC’s CEO, Glenn Edvardsen.

The vessels will have a car-carrying capacity of 3,600 units on 10 cargo decks, of which two decks are movable. This will enable the vessels to accommodate high & heavy and break-bulk mafi cargoes - important business segments for UECC. 

Thanks to their propulsion design, the vessels will also meet the Tier 3 IMO NOx emission limitations coming into force the Baltic and the North Sea in 2021.

“UECC's experience with LNG PCTCs has been very good and there was really no other alternative for us,” said UECC’s Head of Ship Management, Jan Thore Foss. “The LNG solution will reduce the CO2 emission by about 25 percent."

Looking to the future, UECC wants to use carbon neutral and synthetic fuels as they become available. "In our strategy we take a long-term view," said Edvardsen, “and that's why we go for a battery hybrid LNG fuel solution on our newbuildings."