El Coqui readied for maiden voyage

Crowley offers tour of its new LNG-powered vessel.    This week American Shipper got the opportunity to tour Crowley’s newest vessel, El Coqui, as it was being prepared for its maiden voyage from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Juan, Puerto Rico. 


   El Coqui is the first vessel of its type to be powered entirely by liquefied natural gas. LNG is cleaner burning than diesel and is readily available in the United States. Jacksonville recently became home to a new LNG production facility that will provide fuel for El Coqui and its sister ship, Taino, which will be delivered later this fall.



   Both vessels will replace the barges that currently run on Crowley’s Jacksonville-to-San Juan loops. The ships will cut the transit time between the two ports in half, from around six days to about three days.




The ConRo ship will deliver about 750 containers and 320 cars to San Juan on the first leg its journey. Crowley anticipates its new ships to have a significant positive impact on the economy of Puerto Rico, still struggling to recover after serious hurricane damage last year.