SINGAPORE, Aug 15 — The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) found carbon emissions fell 83 per cent using a vegetable oil biofuel blend instead of a marine gas oil in a trial for a dual-fuel liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier, the centre said today.
This was the third of five supply chain bunkering trials that the GCMD has undertaken as part of an US$18 million (RM83.37 million) project to test different biofuel blends to reduce carbon emissions.
The trials are key to helping the fuel and shipping industries come up with green fuels to meet the International Maritime Organisation’s 2030 and 2050 decarbonisation targets.
The biofuel blend used in the latest trial comprised marine gas oil blended with 30 per cent hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) produced from 100 per cent waste and residue.
Using the HVO resulted in an 83 per cent reduction in emissions compared to using fossil-based marine gasoil, the GCMD said in a statement.
GoodFuels supplied about 200 tonnes of the biofuel blend to the mid-sized gas carrier Kaupang, operated by Eastern Pacific Shipping.
Meanwhile, blending marine gas oil with 30 per cent biofuel as a pilot fuel for LPG combustion led to a 20 per cent net reduction in emissions versus sailing on very low-sulphur fuel oil.
A tracer was dosed with the HVO and blended with marine gas oil onboard the bunker vessel for origin and quantity monitoring.
“Transparency is becoming even more crucial as we are now starting to bring the new generation of sustainable marine fuels to market,” said Johannes Schürmann, commercial director at GoodFuels.
The remaining supply chain trials will be run in the next few months, while details of the assurance framework will be shared through a public report in early 2024, according to GCMD.
Previous trials involved blends comprising used cooking oil methyl ester blended with very low-sulphur fuel oil and high-sulphur fuel oil, respectively.
Biofuel bunkering volumes have trended higher at the world’s top bunker hub, Singapore, with bio-blended low-sulphur fuel oil sales climbing to a monthly record high in July.
— Reuters
