Vitol Says Diversity Is Key for Cleaner Fuels for Shippers

Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Dutch multinational energy company Vitol (Rotterdam) said Monday it was on pace to meet its emissions reduction target in shipping, but added that no single fuel will help meet its goal.

Vitol said it was on pace to cut its carbon emissions by 40%, compared to 2008 levels, this year, pledging to respect the cleanup efforts embraced by the U.N.-backed International Maritime Organization (IMO).

IMO has called on shippers to reduce harmful emissions, most recently calling for a cut in sulfur emissions. Most shippers can lower their emissions by using an onboard device called a scrubber, which washes the vessel's exhaust, or by burning cleaner fuels.

More than 90% of all the goods traded globally are carried by a ship at some point during their voyage, and most of these ships are powered by heavy fuel oil (HFO), which is very carbon-intensive.

Ian Butler, the head of the energy transition for shipping at Vitol, said the company has invested in smaller technologies, such as improving propeller efficiency and paints that help a vessel better cut through the water.

"All of these are small incremental gains which we can build up to achieve 5-10% efficiencies on our vessels," he said.

Vitol this year introduced its Marine Future bunker vessel that will supply biofuel blends to shippers off Singapore. The company said that, while early in the developmental stage, demand for biofuels in the shipping industry is expected to surge.

Sales volumes surged more than 250% in the region from 2022 to 2023, Vitol said.

Elsewhere, American global food corporation Cargill (Wayzata, Minnesota) introduced the Pyxis Ocean, a vessel retrofitted with two sails with the trademarked name WindWings. The vessel embarked on its maiden voyage in late August, traveling through the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, and passing both the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn. The ship emitted 37% fewer emissions than a comparable voyage with conventional fuels.

British energy company BP (NYSE:BP) (London, England), for its part, announced plans to invest $10 million in California-based biofuels company WasteFuel (Los Angeles), which is working to produce so-called green methanol.

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said the main advantage is that it has lower emissions than conventional methanol, but production costs could be as much as four times greater than methanol derived from fossil fuels.

For Vitol, Butler said the company is looking at everything from biomethanol to green ammonia, which has no carbon footprint, but is difficult to handle safely. Across the board, he said, no single technology or fuel can solve the emissions strategy for maritime shippers.

Instead, it will be something of case-by-case strategy.

"Smaller vessels may go to hydrogen, larger vessels may move to biofuels," he said. "There are even conversations around nuclear vessels coming in, but nuclear tends to scare people."

IMO aims to cut total greenhouse gas emissions from maritime shippers by 50% relative to a 2008 benchmark by 2050.

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