Preliminary Desktop Screening of Selected Polish Inland Ports in the Oder Waterway System for LNG-Fuelled Vessels in the Context of Sustainable Development: An Ordinal Multicriteria and Bottleneck Approach

Abstract

Within the broader sustainable-development transition of inland navigation, liquefied natural gas (LNG) may serve as a transitional fuel, but its use requires appropriate berthing conditions, controllable candidate transfer areas, landside access, operational procedures, and emergency-response arrangements. This study develops a preliminary desktop-screening framework for assessing whether inland-port locations warrant further investigation for LNG bunkering. Ten Polish inland-port locations within the Oder waterway system were screened using a common evidence structure, of which five representative cases—Gliwice, Koźle Port, Wrocław, Opole, and Głogów—were examined in greater detail. The assessment relies exclusively on publicly available documentary and geospatial information; no site inspections, interviews, or engineering verification were conducted, and the results do not constitute a formal safety or operational certification. The revised framework uses ordered evidence categories rather than a cardinal readiness index and distinguishes berthing conditions, spatial controllability of a candidate transfer area, landside and emergency access, physical feasibility of a reference truck-to-ship configuration, and documented operational preparedness. Critical conditions are evaluated using a non-compensatory bottleneck rule. The analysis does not determine LNG safety-zone dimensions or operational risk, which require site-specific engineering and risk assessment. Under the available documentary and geospatial evidence, Gliwice and Koźle Port provide the strongest basis for subsequent field and engineering verification. For Wrocław, Opole, and Głogów, feasibility of the reference configuration was not demonstrated at the preliminary desktop-screening stage, primarily because of spatial and functional constraints. Truck-to-ship bunkering is treated as a reference screening configuration rather than as an option proven to be superior to ship-to-ship or pipe-to-ship alternatives. The results therefore support sustainable-development-oriented infrastructure planning by identifying priorities for further verification rather than confirming operational readiness or definitive infeasibility.