Spain approaches milestone with first passenger ship to sail on second generation bio bunker fuel

Spanish energy company Cepsa on Wednesday (9 August) said Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea ferries will make 84 trips across the Strait of Gibraltar using Cepsa’s second-generation biofuels in August. 

This is the first time in Spain that passenger ships will use this type of sustainable fuel, produced at Cepsa’s San Roque Energy Park (Campo de Gibraltar, Cadiz) from agricultural waste and supplied at the Port of Algeciras, making this port facility a leader in the decarbonization of maritime transport.

Cepsa, which is firmly committed to second-generation biofuels to promote the decarbonisation of maritime transport and the circular economy, is supplying this renewable diesel to the Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea ferries that connect Algeciras with Ceuta.

To produce this renewable diesel, Cepsa has transformed one of its plants in the San Roque Energy Park, adapting the Isomax unit for production of second-generation biofuels via co-processing.

Samir Fernández, Director of Marine Fuel Solutions at Cepsa, highlighting the importance of this milestone in the company’s energy transition strategy, said: “We continue to promote sustainable mobility as one of the pillars of our strategic growth. With initiatives like these and the ones we are rolling out in air and rail transport, we are progressing towards our goal of becoming the leading biofuels producer in Spain and Portugal, while facilitating the decarbonization of our customers in the maritime sector.”

Agustín Aguilera, Director of Operations and Environment at Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea, said: “At Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea, we are firmly committed to the requirements of the energy transition. This is defined in our carbon footprint reduction plan, certified by Lloyd’s and endorsed by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.”

“We have taken important steps in this direction. We’ve had a natural understanding with Cepsa, which is why we entrusted them with the supply of 2G biofuels that we are already using in our ships in the Strait of Gibraltar and will extend to the rest of our fleet.”

The nearly 100 metric tonnes of renewable diesel supplied will avoid over 63 tonnes of CO2 emissions, the equivalent of planting 750 trees, and allow Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea ferries to sail from the Port of Algeciras with up to 15% renewable diesel in their tanks, meeting EU targets ahead of time.

Photo credit: Cepsa
Published: 10 August, 2023