Risk analysis for ship-to-ship operations, new paper

Currently there is a strong drive in the marine business sector to increase use of alternative fuels for propulsion, e.g. LNG fuelled ships. To supply alternative fuel, ship-to-ship operations play an important role, since it is the only way to transfer required bunker volumes for merchant ships in reasonable time, when terminal supply is restricted to less than a handful locations on an entire continent. Introducing an alternative fuel in large scale requires that the risks are evaluated in an efficient manner. SSPA is invited to present a paper on the Gas Fuelled Ships (GFS) Conference, taking place in Hamburg, 16-18 November. The paper “Simulator based risk management for LNG bunkering”, presents a tool for risk assessment, based on simulations, which is used for development and evaluations of equipment, ships, ports, operations and guidelines.

Standards, best practices and technology for bunkering operations are at various stages of development. E.g. ISO/TS 18683 “Guidelines for systems and installations for supply of LNG as fuel to ships” constitute a good starting point, mainly addressing equipment for onshore supply. This implies many areas where development is needed to assure safe LNG bunkering operations. Such areas range from equipment to standards, best practices and tools for risk assessment.

The paper presents a tool for risk assessment, which can be used for development and evaluation of equipment, ships, ports and the operation itself. In addition, the proposed analysis can be used as a support in the development of best practices and guidelines for ship-to-ship bunkering.

A basis for the tool is SSPA’s state of the art ship simulator, with more than 40 years of development. Simulation results, such as ship motions, are coupled to the risk analysis tool, which gives output tailored for each specific task. In the current project, a case study of bunkering of a LNG powered ship is performed. Results are presented as a window of safe operation in terms of weather conditions for ship-to-ship bunkering. Effects of interfering traffic offshore and in port are also addressed.

It has also been identified that models for hydrodynamic interaction between adjacent ship may need further development.

Read more about SSPAs experience and knowledge of LNG bunkering and how SSPA is able to over bridge the challenges and assist our clients to apply the guidelines in a simple yet efficient matter. ISO/TS 18683: A good starting point with challenges

About the paper and SSPAs experts
The paper “Simulator based risk management for LNG bunkering” is written by SSPAs experts in simulations and risk analysis. Mr. Olov Lundbäck holds a Ph.D. in Naval Architecture and has been working with simulations, ship dynamics and manoeuvring for many years. He is a Project Manager at SSPA with focus on simulations and ship motions. Mr. Axel Hörteborn holds a M.Sc. in Risk Management and Safety Engineering and has been working with risk assessment for LNG operations and Monte Carlo Simulations. He is a Project Manager at SSPA with focus on combining the fields of risk assessment and simulations.

About the 7th Motorship GFS Conference 
The conference will offer a technical perspective on the innovation and investment driving the uptake of LNG, methanol and other low-flashpoint fuels in the commercial shipping sector. With a focus on knowledge sharing from a variety of projects, the conference will examine the latest advances in vessel design and operation, propulsion, supply infrastructure and associated technology. Hamburg, 16-18 November2016. Read more at: motorship.com/gfsconference

Photo: Traditional bunkering ship-to-ship. Nelly Forsman, SSPA.