Indian State Mulls LNG for Fishing Boats

The southern Indian state of Kerala is looking to promote the use of LNG as fuel in the fishing sector and has decided to initiate a pilot project to retrofit an existing marine diesel engine system to enable it operate on dual fuel (LNG and diesel).

State think-tank Kerala Development and Innovation Strategic Council (K-DISC) August 12 issued an expression of interest (EOI) for the pilot project to use LNG to fuel a fishing boat.

According to the document published on the K-DISC website, the project needs a vendor to modify the "existing marine diesel engine and install required LNG fuel storage tank and other associated equipment and pipelines.” The project also requires modification in the boat hull to accommodate LNG tanks, pipelines, and other associated equipment. Interested parties must submit their EOI proposal latest by September 7 at Petronet LNG’s Kochi LNG import terminal.

The selected vendor shall be required to complete the entire work in all respects within 18 weeks from the date of issue of the letter of acceptance, K-DISC said.

In order to tackle air pollution in urban clusters, India is looking to increase the proportion of gas in its energy mix. The Indian government has set target of raising the share of gas in the energy mix from 6% at present to 15% by 2030.