VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - It's a move that could save
BC Ferries 40 per cent in fuel costs; the corporation is aiming to convert more than half of its fleet from marine diesel to liquefied natural gas (LNG) over the next decade.
The conversion was one of a number of cost-saving recommendations made in a report by Ferry Commissioner Gordon Macatee this week.
BC Ferries hopes to have 16 to 20 of its 35 vessels running on LNG over the next 10 years. Macatee calculates the move could translate to $28 million in savings annually. But conversion doesn't come cheap: It costs around $10 million for smaller vessels and up to $30 million for larger ones.
Vehicle ferries in Norway and Washington State already use liquefied natural gas, while New York's Staten Island Ferries are converting to the fuel as well.