The Japanese logistic provider, Marubeni Corporation, has conducted a trial voyage on one of Marubeni’s chartered vessels using marine biofuel. The Voyage took place from Vlissingen, the Netherlands, to Morgan’s Point, Texas, USA. According to the company, to their knowledge, this is the first biofuel supply to an Ethylene Carrier in the world.
The new ethylene carrier GasChem Dollart was supplied with B25 marine biofuel, consisting of approximately 25% fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) blended with very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO). The biofuel blend used on this Voyage was delivered at Vlissingen by BP Europa SE – BP Nederland, a subsidiary of BP p.l.c. GasChem Dollart.
FAME is a biofuel that is largely produced from recycled cooking oils and renewable oil sources. The FAME has physical properties similar to those of conventional diesel and is biodegradable. It is linked to significant GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions, and it’s blended in order to be used as a drop-in maritime biofuel, meaning that no modifications to the existing fleets are needed.
The origination and production of the FAME used in the trial are certified by the ISCC system, a leading multistakeholder certification scheme for biobased materials. This certification requires that sustainability criteria are followed throughout the supply chain, including the tracing of the waste feedstock from the point of generation, through processing, transportation, and delivery of the final biofuel.
The company hasn’t yet revealed any technical details about the ship. But what’s important is it recently completed the world’s first ethylene transport, using only biofuel. The Voyage was aimed at understanding whether technical issues such as combustibility and stability arise when biofuel is used.
Marubeni provides logistic services for Ethylene transportation globally and is one of the biggest players in the Global Ethylene Market. This trial is one of our steps to provide solutions to our customers to achieve Decarbonization. Marubeni will continue to develop further services to support our customer’s needs towards Decarbonization.
