• 2 min de lectura
• 2 min de lectura
Axpo and Vitol completed the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering operation at the Port of Civitavecchia, Italy, refueling a flagship vessel of a major international cruise company.
Italy's main cruise port and Europe's second largest now joins Genoa and Naples in providing LNG refueling services. This represents a significant milestone in the development of infrastructure and services for alternative marine fuels in Italian ports.
The Green Pearl, a 7,500 m³ Italian bunkering vessel operated by Axpo, carried out the ship-to-ship refueling operation at pier 18 in Civitavecchia. Operated by Axpo, the Green Pearl entered service in 2026 and is dedicated to ship-to-ship and ship-to-truck bunkering operations in Italian ports.
Axpo Italia CEO, Simone Demarchi, stated that "this latest operation demonstrates the ability of our supply chain to grow rapidly and meet the needs of major international cruise lines. In the coming years, the shipping and cruise sectors will need to accelerate their decarbonization process. Today, LNG is one of the most important and accessible solutions to support this transition."
Stefan Dubbeldam, Head of Small-Scale LNG and LNG Bunkering at Vitol, added that "LNG and bio-LNG play a critical role in reducing emissions from LNG bunkering. Vitol invests globally across the entire value chain, from the production and trading of bio-LNG and LNG, to the solutions we offer our customers through our fleet of LNG bunkering vessels."
Axpo's expanded coverage to Civitavecchia, Rome's main seaport, follows the launch of ship-to-ship LNG bunkering in Genoa at the end of 2025 and in Naples in May of this year. Axpo is committed to creating a low-emission fuel supply chain specifically for the maritime and heavy transport sectors.
In addition to the Green Pearl, the company has also chartered the Alisios LNG, a new low-emission bunkering vessel with a capacity of 12,500 m³, which began operations in Spain last March.
