The blossoming of biofuels

The maritime sector is exploring a wide variety of biofuels, including Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME), hydrotreated vegetable oils (HVO), FAME distillation residues (FDR), and high quality (cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) with biomass-to-liquid (BTL) products and straight vegetable oil (SVO) products also in the mix at very small proportions. These biofuels can be used in concentrations up to 100% (B100) or as substantial blend components with residual-type products.  

Sustainability certification of blended fuels, which contain proportions of both conventional fuels and biofuels, will become increasingly important thanks to increased clarity on their treatment under environmental regulations, while unstandardised or poorly understood fuels may create compliance uncertainty and pose risk to safe onboard fuel handling.  

The important role of FOBAS 

Against this backdrop, Lloyd’s Register’s Fuel Oil Bunkering Analysis and Advisory Service (FOBAS) provides shipowners with a critical safety net. By combining routine fuel testing, forensic investigation, and regulatory guidance, FOBAS helps the industry adopt biofuels safely, efficiently, and compliantly. 

With decades of experience and a network of expert chemists, engineers, and analysts, FOBAS is a globally recognised authority in marine fuel testing and advisory services. It provides critical insights into fuel quality trends, contamination risks, and regulatory compliance. This integrated approach gives clients clarity on fuel performance and operational risk, helping them make faster, more informed decisions.  

This expertise has been applied to several industry firsts, including supporting United European Car Carriers (UECC) in spearheading the use of cashew nutshell liquid (CNSL) as a sustainable marine fuel, and guiding Whitaker Tankers’ Whitchampion to achieve the first FAME B100 certification.  

Today, as biofuels enter the mainstream, the service has become an essential partner for owners who want to make the leap with confidence. 

The FOBAS Fuel Insight programme compiles this expertise into regular reports, offering a clear picture of global fuel quality and its implications for vessel performance, safety, and environmental compliance. Its latest Fuel Insight report offers a comprehensive overview of the evolving fuel landscape, highlighting both persistent challenges and emerging risks.  

FOBAS has also enhanced its FOBAS Fuel Finder platform with the addition of biofuel availability and quality insights, which now allows users to search, compare and analyse biofuels across global ports.  

Accessible via the LR GMT platform, the interface allows users to explore six months of data from specific ports or suppliers, visualise trends, and download detailed reports in multiple formats. With the ability to compare up to four supplier-port combinations side by side, the tool provides clear, evidence-based insights that support fuel procurement and compliance decisions. 

Growing demand 

According to the FOBAS H1 fuel quality report, the diversity and quality of biofuels are growing. Only 3.5% of fuels tested were off-spec, and only 0.6% unusable, with problems concentrated at specific ports, and distillate fuels the most predictable. 

 The steady, confident uptake of biofuels during the first half of 2025 showcases the industry’s commitment to sustainable operations. The use of FAME-based fuels, especially B30 RF blends, continues to grow — driven by both environmental ambition and new regulatory support. The clarification from MEPC 78 in June 2022, which said that fuels up to B30 can be considered under MARPOL Annex VI reg. 18.3.1., has removed a major barrier for shipowners previously concerned about NOx compliance. This regulatory advancement provides operators with clear pathways for increasing biofuel utilisation while maintaining full compliance with international standards. 

This development has already sparked momentum in key bunkering ports such as Singapore, Algeciras, and Antwerp, where FOBAS testing shows widespread use of biofuel blends with no operational issues reported. The new ISO 8217:2024 standard provides further structure, setting clear specifications and giving operators the confidence to plan voyages with alternative fuels onboard. 

Most quality considerations relate to conventional fuel components rather than FAME content, confirming that established fuel management practices remain effective for sustainable drop-in fuels. 

Visible signs of progress  

Earlier this year operator John H Whitaker Tankers launched the Whitchampion, the first bunker tanker certified to load, carry and blend FAME B100 biofuel on board. Here, class support and technical adaptations such as tank coatings and biofuel-compatible components helped to overcome regulatory challenges. 

According to John H Whitaker Tankers director Ashley Jenkins, speaking at LR’s Fuel For Thought event at London International Shipping Week (LISW), the company will class all its bunker barges as hybrid bunker ship/chemical tankers to pre-empt future biofuel regulation. 

FincoEnergies commercial director Johannes Schurmann explained at the same event that customer demand for biofuels has grown three to four times in each of the past two years, but volumes have grown more slowly, suggesting that increasing numbers of ship operators are experimenting with small biofuel projects. 

Most recently, LR released the latest edition of its award-winning Fuel for Thought series, highlighting the role of biofuels in the superyacht sector’s energy transition. 

Fuel for Thought: Biofuels for Yachts, launched at Monaco Yacht Show, positions hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) as a practical, drop-in alternative to conventional marine fuels. 

With mounting pressure to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, particulate matter and sulphur oxides, HVO is emerging as a leading drop-in solution. It delivers significant environmental benefits without compromising performance or requiring major technical modifications, making it an attractive alternative for yacht owners, captains and management companies. 

This edition of Fuel for Thought explores the opportunities and limitations of biofuels for use in yachting. It provides practical guidance on safety, toxicity, bunkering logistics, fuel quality and regulatory frameworks. The report also examines lifecycle emissions, market demand, economic factors and the supply chain, alongside insights into engine compatibility and NOx emissions. 

The analysis shows that biofuels share similarities with fossil fuels, allowing the use of established industry practices operating with petroleum distillates. HVO, produced through hydrotreatment, can directly replace marine gas oil, offering better stability and combustion. Its drop-in capabilities enable ships to cut carbon emissions cost-effectively, even if they can’t be fully retrofitted for fuels like methanol or ammonia. The report also confirms that safety requirements for transporting, handling, and bunkering liquid biofuels are generally similar to those for fossil-derived fuels. 

While the report underlines the role of biofuels as a practical near-term step, it stresses that they are not a complete solution. A wider strategy, including energy efficiency, sustainable design and alternative propulsion technologies, will be vital for long-term progress. 

Regulatory clarity ahead 

Until recently, many operators hesitated to try biofuels because of uncertainty around nitrogen oxide emissions. MARPOL Annex VI required ships to prove that non-petroleum fuels would not push engines above their NOx limits, a process that often meant lengthy and complex exemption requests or direct NOx emissions measurement. 

That changed in April 2025, when the IMO  approved the ‘Interim Guidance on the Carriage of Blends of Biofuels and MARPOL Annex I Cargoes by Conventional Bunker Ships’. Any fuel blend containing 30 percent biofuel or less is now considered the same as petroleum fuel. Even blends with higher bio-content no longer require fresh NOx trials, provided the engine is run according to its approved technical file.  

At the same time, regional rules are pushing adoption from another angle. The EU’s FuelEU Maritime regulation sets greenhouse gas intensity limits that only biofuels or other low-carbon intensity fuels can realistically meet in the near term. And with carbon now carrying a price tag under the EU ETS, operators have a clear financial incentive to cut their emissions footprint quickly. 

Together, these developments create the conditions for biofuels to move from small-scale trials into mainstream use.  

The road ahead 

To help shipowners, fuel suppliers and producers adopt biofuels safely and at scale, LR has launched its new Biofuel Advisory service.   

The new service is designed to remove uncertainty for the industry by providing end-to-end support across the biofuel supply chain, from production and certification through to delivery and onboard use. The initiative builds on two years of groundwork and combines LR’s energy transition advisory with the technical expertise of FOBAS.  

LR has already worked with leading biofuel producers to assess the impact of regulation on market demand, supported major bunker suppliers in producing transparent documentation for buyers, and guided shipowners through the testing and operational steps needed to start using biofuels across their fleets.  

Biofuels represent an immediate and practical solution, but owners need confidence on performance, safety and compliance. LR’s new Biofuel Advisory service brings together technical expertise and regulatory insight to provide the industry with confidence and clarity at every stage of the biofuel supply and adoption process. 

With clear evidence of biofuel’s evolution from a voluntary decarbonisation measure to one that will be used at scale, the pieces are falling in place to make sure biofuels can be deployed effectively.