VT Halter begins LNG ATB

A start of construction ceremony at VT Halter Marine‘s Pascagoula, Miss., facility has held March 8 for the first U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) articulated tug/barge unit (LNG ATB). The ATB will be owned by New Orleans-based Q-LNG Transportation. The company formed in November, and is one-fifth owned by Harvey Gulf International Marine and 80 percent by CEO Shane Guidry. The ATB’s tug, Q-Ocean Service, will measure 128-feet and be powered by four GE 6L250 MDC Tier 4 diesel engines. The 324-foot barge, Q-LNG 4000, is designed to carry 4,000 cubic meters of LNG and will meet ABS and International Gas Carrier requirements as an LNG bunkering barge. The construction is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2020, as part of a long-term contract with Shell Trading to deliver LNG fuel to various ports in Florida and the Caribbean. (Source: Work Boat 03/08/18)