As the new year dawns, a familiar debate has resurfaced, fueled by headlines in outlets like the BBC and The Times. At the heart of the controversy is the MV Glen Sannox, a new dual-fuel LNG/MGO ferry servicing the route between the Scottish mainland and the Isle of Arran.

Critics have pointed out that this vessel emits more CO2 than the 31-year-old diesel-powered ship it replaced, a fact exacerbated by the contentious issue of methane slip. But this story underscores a deeper paradox within the maritime industry’s decarbonisation efforts: Are we unfairly penalising vessels that use alternative fuels like LNG while ignoring the broader environmental cost of what these ships carry?

The MV Glen Sannox was heralded as a step forward in reducing shipping emissions, but its introduction has reignited debates over LNG’s efficacy as a transition fuel. Methane slip, the release of unburned methane during combustion, significantly undermines LNG’s purported climate benefits. According to data from CalMac, once methane slip is factored in, any CO2 reductions achieved by using LNG over traditional marine diesel evaporate. This is a familiar topic for readers of The Motorship. Just last week, we featured Wärtsilä’s Juha Kytölä discussing their NextDF technology, which aims to mitigate methane slip—but solutions like these are still in their infancy and not yet industry-wide.