Drop-in biofuel trial success
The M/V MOL Endowment was refuelled with 992 tonnes of marine biofuel product at the Port of Singapore on 21 December 2022 before embarking on the Ocean Network Express (ONE) Japan Straits Malaysia service, taking 20 days to fully use the fuel.
Run as part of the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) project, the trial completed with no modifications to the engines or infrastructure, demonstrating that biofuels can be used successfully as ‘drop-in fuels’. The fuel used was B24, a blend of used cooking oil methyl ester and very low sulphur fuel oil supplied by Chevron.
Traceability is a key element of the assurance framework and, as such, the biofuel included a physical tracer and was subjected to repeated samplings during the entire supply chain. The resultant data will be used by GCMD in further developing the framework.
The trial also marked a step forward in shipping’s digitalisation as all transactions between ONE and Chevron were made through the Singapore Trade Data Exchange, a tool to enable data sharing between supply chain partners.
“The maritime industry has many interconnected players, and collaboration is key in moving our decarbonisation ambition forward,” said Jeremy Nixon, chief executive of Ocean Network Express.
“It is encouraging to see the various partners at different points of the supply chain come together in this biofuel trial for the common goal of a better, more sustainable future.”
