Interview By Le Marin: “For The First Time, New Fuels are Designed for the Marine Sector”
Blog Article - July 14, 2022
Our latest blog features highlights from a news article by Thibaud Teillard at Le Marin following an interview with Frédéric Meyer, Director of Strategy at TotalEnergies Marine Fuels, at the recent Euromaritime event held in Marseille in June.
In the article, Frédéric explains various low-carbon fuel projects TotalEnergies is working on for the marine sector, including recent biofuel bunkering operations that the Company has performed in Singapore, first for a bulk carrier chartered by NYK Line to transport cargo provided by Anglo American, and most recently, for a vehicle carrier operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL).
During the interview, discussions centred on why TotalEnergies Marine Fuels is seeking to develop this sector in Singapore and Rotterdam and highlighted the quality of biofuels as a ‘drop-in solution’ that can be implemented without delay to lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Frédéric added that biofuels appeal to shipowners as an immediate solution to reduce the carbon intensity of a vessel. The upcoming International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulations on the classification of ships by their carbon intensity (CII), which will kick into effort in January 2023, will have a strong impact on small ships in particular, such as ferries or feeders, which need to deploy a high speed on short distances.
In order to provide a broader biofuel offering, TotalEnergies is working in close collaboration with CMA CGM within the framework of the Coalition for the Energy of the Future, of which both companies are members, to offer bio-VLSFO that is derived from wood waste. An industrial pilot is planned to start during the summer in TotalEnergies’ Donges refinery.
At TotalEnergies, investments are also being made in hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) with a unit in service at La Mède and another under construction at Grandpuits. Unlike esterified products, such as used cooking oil methyl ester (UCOME), it is a biofuel that can replace marine diesel (MGO) and perfectly suited to replace distillates on board small vessels. HVO may also find opportunities as a pilot fuel for new low carbon fuels such as bio and e-methanol.
Beyond biofuels, TotalEnergies Marine Fuels is also looking at the supply of green methanol and biométhane, amongst other future marine fuel candidates, to support the marine sector’s decarbonization push.
To read the full article which is subscription based, go to https://lemarin.ouest-france.fr/secteurs-activites/shipping/44153-pour-la-premiere-fois-de-nouveaux-carburants-sont-concus-pour-la