Intertanko proposes fuel switch

Intertanko, the association of independent tanker owners and operators of

oil and chemical tankers, is planning to propose that the world’s shipping

industry switch from residual fuel to distillate fuel to further reduce

seaborne air emission.

The Intertanko proposal, which is not yet final and may still be revised,

will be made to a working group of the IMO in Oslo, Norway, in November. The Oslo meeting of IMO’s Marine Environment Committee will study possible changes or revision to the so-called Annex 6, which governs air pollution from ships. An

international treaty, Annex 6 was ratified by IMO member nations in 1997 and

went into force in May 2005.

“We are considering in this document putting on the table an issue we think might be worth further discussion by the working group,” said JoeAngelo, Intertanko’s director of Americas regulatory affairs. Angelo labelled the planned document as containing “suggestions” for the IMO group of experts to consider.

“It’s absolutely crucial that there is an international debate on how we

meet expectations on all the possible solutions” to reducing such emission,

Bill Box, a spokesman in London for Intertanko, said. Box called the upcoming

Oslo meeting on November 13-17 “critical” to deciding on a shipping industry

response.

Annex 6 sets limits worldwide on sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide

emissions, primarily a 4.5% cap on fuel oil sulfur content. But beyond that

general limit, the treaty also allows for Sulfur Emissions Critical Areas

(SECAs), which require a 1.5% cap on such emissions. Box noted that the Baltic, North Sea and Northwest Europe regions already have been declared as SECA areas, and that, “they’re going to proliferate dramatically” in coming years, forcing a comprehensive solution on fuel use.

The shipping industry appears to face two potential choices: continue using residual fuel oil and look to shipboard technologies to clean the fuel, or switch to cleaner burning fuel substitutes, such as distillate fuel. “At the moment, our preference is to get clean burning distillate on the table and get it discussed,” said Box. But whether the IMO ultimately opts for a distillate or technological solution, “either way, it’s going to cost money,” Box conceded.