THE International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) introduction of the new low sulphur rule for marine fuel is expected to lift demand for biofuels, given that the cost differential against more expensive compliant low sulphur fuel is shrinking.
GoodShipping chief executive Dirk Kronemeijer said biofuel trials conducted this year with CMA CGM and Ikea explored whether the technology works and any final technical issues. He believes full commercial use of biofuel is likely by next year.
'It will become a lot simpler in terms of the business case from 2020 due to the sulphur cap,' he told London's Lloyd's List. 'This year we still had to compete with heavy fuel oil. We're beyond doing trials now. We are at the point of scaling and it is going a lot faster at the moment than everyone thinks.'
The GoodShipping programme was launched by biofuels developer GoodFuels in 2017 to stimulate and demonstrate the use of biofuels as the best option to make the shipping industry more sustainable.
Mr Kronemeijer said that biofuels were becoming more competitive for the group's shipper and beneficial cargo owner clients.
'We are getting into the ballpark where we can compete head-on with carbon offset credits,' he said. 'Also, our clients typically need the CO2 offset element but also want to help accelerate the energy transition within shipping. They would rather do it this way that by buying offsets outside the industry.'
GoodFuels now is looking to scale up its production of bio-fuels, which it makes from recycled cooking oils and waste forest products.
'If we had the capacity, we could do the entire volumes of a number of our clients,' said Mr Kronemeijer. 'We already have some that want to go only via bio-fuel. The problem is on the supply side; our challenge is more to provide enough.
WORLD SHIPPING
GoodShipping chief executive Dirk Kronemeijer said biofuel trials conducted this year with CMA CGM and Ikea explored whether the technology works and any final technical issues. He believes full commercial use of biofuel is likely by next year.
'It will become a lot simpler in terms of the business case from 2020 due to the sulphur cap,' he told London's Lloyd's List. 'This year we still had to compete with heavy fuel oil. We're beyond doing trials now. We are at the point of scaling and it is going a lot faster at the moment than everyone thinks.'
The GoodShipping programme was launched by biofuels developer GoodFuels in 2017 to stimulate and demonstrate the use of biofuels as the best option to make the shipping industry more sustainable.
Mr Kronemeijer said that biofuels were becoming more competitive for the group's shipper and beneficial cargo owner clients.
'We are getting into the ballpark where we can compete head-on with carbon offset credits,' he said. 'Also, our clients typically need the CO2 offset element but also want to help accelerate the energy transition within shipping. They would rather do it this way that by buying offsets outside the industry.'
GoodFuels now is looking to scale up its production of bio-fuels, which it makes from recycled cooking oils and waste forest products.
'If we had the capacity, we could do the entire volumes of a number of our clients,' said Mr Kronemeijer. 'We already have some that want to go only via bio-fuel. The problem is on the supply side; our challenge is more to provide enough.
WORLD SHIPPING