Tristar orders electric hybrid bunker vessel

Dubai’s Tristar Group has placed an order with Turkey’s Akdeniz Shipyard to build an electric hybrid bunker barge for the UAE market.

Scheduled to be commissioned in the first quarter of 2025, the vessel will be positioned at the Port of Fujairah.

The 750 cu m vessel is designed to house diesel generators as a backup to electric power and if run, will discharge flue gases underwater to reduce GHG emissions into the atmosphere. With well-planned operations, it is expected that carbon emissions will be reduced by more than 50%, Tristar said.

“We are creating another opportunity to pioneer green technology in an environment that has been familiar and fruitful for us, for many years,” said Tristar Group CEO, Eugene Mayne.

“As a prominent player in the global maritime sector, it is obligatory for Tristar to be willing and able to take the first steps towards any feasible decarbonisation, and create sectoral change,” Mayne explained, adding: “As port infrastructure continues to develop in support of using electric barges for coastal operations, we are optimistic this bold move will encourage the local maritime industry to follow suit.”