Findings of an industry wide survey on fuel oil quality and safety conducted by BIMCO, The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), INTERCARGO and INTERTANKO has suggested the transition to IMO 2020 compliant fuel oil (0.5% sulphur) has not been without problems, says fuel treatment specialist Aderco.
The dataset was based on 192 responses from individuals of the respective members’ technical (52.6%), operational (21.9%) and bunker (8.3%) departments.
BIMCO noted the distribution frequency of answers cannot be considered to represent the frequency of problems in the world fleet.
However, it does give an indication of where the challenges may have been for the shipping industry on a global basis since 1 January 2020.
“With new blend proportions and feedstocks needing to be formulated in order to create fuel mixtures that comply with the IMO’s new 0.5 % sulphur limit, issues such as increased sludge deposits, wax, increased wear and tear due to cat fines, poor ignition, fuel oil pumps seizures, as well as loss of propulsion very much mirrored requests from ship owners, ship managers and ship operators, seeking assistance as how best to handle the situation using our products, both as a preventative measure and remedy,” said Olivier Baiwir – Managing Director at Aderco.
“Clearly, whilst Covid-19 has not assisted the situation for bunker suppliers, fluctuating fuel issues such as poor stability and compatibility, higher pour point, fluctuating viscosities and fuel contamination can all lead to low shelf life of some VLSFO’s.”
Related: BIMCO: Industry survey shows switch to low-sulphur fuel has not been without problems
Related: BIMCO, ICS, INTERCARGO, INTERTANKO launch IMO 2020 fuels survey
Photo credit: Aderco
Published: 27 August, 2020
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