Transport & Environment (T&E) infrared imagery has revealed ‘green’ LNG ships emitting unburned methane into the atmosphere.
In a T&E investigation, infrared cameras with hydrocarbon gas detection filters were employed to record ships in the Rotterdam port. Two LNG-powered container ships were found to leak considerable amounts of uncombusted and partially combusted methane.
“We are in a climate crisis.” said Delphine Gozillon, shipping officer of T&E. “We cannot afford to put more methane into the atmosphere. Our investigation is just a small sample, but it should act as a warning to policymakers. In promoting LNG, it is betting on the wrong horse. We should be focusing on genuinely green hydrogen-based solutions instead.”
The footage shows heat and gas emissions from ship engines’ exhaust stacks, with a bright light signifying a heat source. Uncombusted hydrocarbon emissions may be detected when the plume travels away from the hot exhaust stack.
In 2021, shipowners ordered more gas-powered ships than in the previous four years combined, with LNG ships marketed as a clean alternative to traditional fuels. The natural gas industry continues to lobby for LNG as a green transportation alternative, citing little methane leakage based on its own statistics in what T&E describes as a “methane-gate.”
