Ultra Low Carbon Marine Fuel Passes Tests in Northern Europe

by | Dec 3, 2018

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marine fuel

(Photo: GoodFuels Marine’s Bio-Fuel Oil. Credit: GoodFuels Marine)

Dutch low-carbon marine fuel supplier GoodFuels Marine reports successful trials of their zero-emission Bio-Fuel Oil with Danish shipping company Norden A/S. The trials took place in Northern Europe and involved hundreds of metric tons of the fuel.

Bio-Fuel Oil was taken onboard the Nord Highlander, a Danish oil and chemical tanker vessel that runs commercial operations in the North and Baltic seas.

“The culmination of three years extensive research and development with partners including Royal Dutch Boskalis and engine manufacturer Wärtsilä, GoodFuels’ Bio-Fuel Oil (BFO) delivers near-zero carbon and sulfur oxide emissions without any requirement for engine modifications,” the marine fuel company says.

These trials in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp region demonstrate the capability to future-proof fuel requirements for shipowners and operators seeking alternatives to distillates and ultra low sulfur fuel oil (ULSFO), according to GoodFuels.

The company added that BFO complies with 2020 0.5% sulfur cap requirements and the latest International Maritime Organization greenhouse gas reduction requirements.

“Bringing this to market now offers shipping a near-zero carbon and SOx alternative to HFO, and VLSFO — 0.5% blended fossil fuel — both of which will be prevalent in the market post-2020,” said GoodFuels Marine CEO Dirk Kronemeijer. “From this point onwards we want to scale supply as fast as we can in order to actively contribute to the world’s 1.5-degree challenge.”

GoodFuels Marine and Norden say they plan to continue working together to scale usage of the fuel as an alternative to HFO. They aim to do this through the GoodShipping Program, which engages cargo owners in lowering carbon emissions from shipping. This year the program announced that five participating shippers had completely offset their cargo carbon emissions by refueling a vessel with marine biofuels.

“Norden has come a long way in increasing fuel efficiency and has reduced CO2 emissions per metric ton of cargo transported on owned tanker vessels by 25% between 2007 to 2017,” said Norden CEO Jan Rindbo. “With the newly introduced IMO targets on CO2 reductions, however, it is evident that increased fuel efficiency alone is not enough. We need alternative solutions and with this test, Norden has shown a viable method towards reaching these targets.”

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