Port of Santos hosts Brazil’s first bioethanol bunkering of deep-sea containership

Sugar and bioethanol trading company Copersucar on Monday (13 July) said the company and its partners successfully completed a bioethanol bunkering operation for the CMA CGM IRON, the first 13,000 TEU tri-fuel certified engine containership, at the Port of Santos on 12 July.

The partners are CMA CGM Group, AGEO Terminais, the largest liquid bulk storage operator at the Port of Santos; Santos Brasil, the biggest container terminal in Brazil; and Bunker Holding subsidiary Bunker One. 

Copersucar said the operation represents a major milestone for the decarbonisation of maritime transport, positions Brazil among the countries capable of carrying out this type of bunkering operation, and reinforces bioethanol as a readily available solution to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the shipping sector.

The bioethanol supplied by Copersucar benefits from a certified supply chain. Sugarcane expansion takes place mainly on degraded pastureland, while Brazil’s RenovaBio program establishes stringent sustainability and zero-deforestation requirements.

The bunkering required logistical and operational coordination among multiple stakeholders across the value chain, involving the transport of bioethanol to the Port of Santos, its storage in dedicated infrastructure, and its transfer to the vessel via a specialized barge.

“The operation provides practical evidence that bioethanol offers the attributes needed to accelerate the decarbonisation of maritime transport,” the company said. 

Beyond this first demonstration, the Port of Santos and Santos Brasil container terminal are positioning themselves and Brazil as a future low-carbon marine fuels hub for South America. As the continent’s largest port and a major gateway for global trade, Santos has the potential to connect Brazil’s renewable energy resources with international shipping demand. 

The CMA CGM IRON, delivered in 2025, is the Group’s first vessel in a series of twelve 13,000 TEU containerships, equipped with the world’s first tri-fuel engine certified to operate on bioethanol: Everllence-B&W G95ME-C10.5-LGIM.

“Together with our partners, we have shown that innovation can move from the laboratory to real maritime operations. The certification of our first tri-fuel vessel is a major technological milestone for CMA CGM. It opens the way for the broader use of lower-carbon fuels and gives us new options to accelerate the decarbonisation of our shipping activities” said Christine Cabau Woehrel, Executive Vice President Assets & Operations, CMA CGM.

“This operation demonstrates Copersucar’s ability to connect production, logistics and markets to enable bioenergy solutions at scale. More than a pioneering bunkering operation, we are creating the conditions for bioethanol to become a competitive component of the maritime energy mix, further strengthening Brazil’s leadership in the transition to a low-carbon economy,” said Tomás Manzano, CEO of Copersucar.

“This operation can be considered a milestone in the global maritime industry’s energy transition, as the sector begins to adapt to this new model. Today, Around 70 vessels of the global fleet are capable of operating on methanol and, consequently, with bioethanol. Over the next few years, however, an additional 400 vessels are expected to be delivered from shipyards ready to sail using a non-fossil fuel,” said Flavio Ribeiro, CEO of Bunker One.

Photo credit: Copersucar
Published: 14 July, 2026