On 29 June 2022 TotalEnergies Marine Fuels and Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd (MOL) successfully completed the first biofuel bunker operation for a vehicle carrier in Singapore. The local operation was made possible with support from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.
The MOL-operated car and truck carrier Heroic Ace was refuelled by TotalEnergies-supplied biofuel on 11 June 2022 via ship-to-ship transfer, while the carrier performed cargo operations simultaneously. The biofuel has been consumed during the carrier’s voyage to Jebel Ali, in the United Arab Emirates.
The biofuel blend used in this trial composed of VLSFO (Very Low Sulfur Fuel Oil) blended with 20% second-generation, waste-based and ISCC-certified UCOME (Used Cooking Oil Methyl Ester). From a well-to-wake assessment, the biofuel will reduce approximately 17% of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions compared with conventional fuel oil.
MOL’s initial analysis of the vehicle carrier’s engine and machinery performance have demonstrated a high compatibility and safe use of the biofuel onboard the vessel.
MOL Car Carrier Division has been working on trial usage of biofuel during navigation in the European short haul trade for more than a year.
TotalEnergies and MOL believe biofuels provide an immediate and sustainable solution to decarbonize shipping today, as they can be blended or dropped into existing conventional fuels with little or no technological developments required on vessels.
As part of TotalEnergies’ strategy to produce a new generation of biofuels for use in transport, TotalEnergies is investing in biofuels projects based on animal fat or used oils, thereby sourcing from the circular economy and limiting the competition for and impact on arable land.
