Finnish shipping firm Viking Line will boost its purchases of bio-liquefied natural gas (bio-LNG) on all its routes in the Baltic Sea.
The company will increase its purchases sixfold, equivalent to consumption of the Viking Glory. The bio-LNG will be used by the Viking Glory and Viking Grace ships in Gasum's pooling to comply with the FuelEU Maritime regulation, the company said.
To complement this the vessels will also use LNG for bunkering.
The FuelEU maritime regulation requires ship operators traveling in, out of and within EU territorial waters to gradually reduce their GHG intensity on a lifecycle basis, with reductions starting at 2pc in 2025, rising to 6pc in 2030 and reaching an 80pc drop by 2050, compared with 2020 levels.
Viking Line plans to increase its bio-LNG consumption to 3,800t in 2025, from 600mt in 2024 and 10mt in 2023.
Many shipowners are turning to LNG and bio-LNG as a bunker fuel to comply with FuelEU maritime emissions rules. Spanish terminal operator Enagas has started to offer bio-LNG services at its Cartagena LNG terminal in the Mediterranean. The EU's sales for LNG and bio-LNG were up 52pc in 2024, according to the EU's Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) database.
Bio-LNG can be used as a drop-in fuel in LNG engines, industry body SEA-LNG's mid-year market review said. Its use for bunkering has been growing in Europe, with operations in place in Belgium, France, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

