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Nautilus Labs, BIMCO white paper: Charter parties holding back industry decarbonisation efforts

Study outlines potential for 15 to 20% of maritime industry’s emissions to be eliminated by changing current approaches to charter party frameworks without a negative impact on fleet capacity.

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Nautilus Labs and BIMCO on Thursday (25 May) released a white paper imploring the maritime industry to rethink prevailing charter party frameworks.

The white paper, titled ‘The Wrong Speed for All the Wrong Reasons’,  explores how current ways of working in the shipping industry have entrenched “sail-fast-then-wait” behaviours, resulting in major inefficiencies that produce excess emissions and increased costs. Using data from live charter agreements, the white paper demonstrates that this “sail-fast-then-wait” behaviour can produce substantial excess fuel consumption and emissions even on a single voyage.

The white paper outlines the potential for 15-20% of the industry’s emissions to be eliminated by changing current approaches to charter party frameworks without a negative impact on fleet capacity. For an industry that emits approximately 1 billion tonnes of carbon emissions annually, these savings equate to approximately 150-200 million metric tonnes of emissions and tens of billions of dollars in fuel.

To hasten emissions reduction, the white paper proposes key changes in charter party terms to drive better alignment of incentives between owners and charterers, removing the focus on claims and encouraging collaborative ways of working towards vessel efficiency. 

This new approach to charter parties and dynamic performance tables is now possible due to advances in machine learning software and high-frequency data from ships. With these foundational technologies in place, the industry can then optimise berth planning to reimagine “first-come, first-served” port operations that drive operators to race to queue up for a berth, leading to fuel waste and unnecessary emissions.

“In the age of decarbonisation, traditional key charter party clauses are no longer fit for purpose and need to be reviewed to address these systemic inefficiencies,” said Grant Hunter, Director of Standards, Innovation and Research at BIMCO. 

“BIMCO is committed to helping our industry achieve its Net Zero targets. By realigning incentives between owners and charterers and removing the barriers to collaboration, we can ensure we’re all on course towards a more sustainable future for the maritime industry.”

“Charter party agreements create misaligned incentives between owners and charterers; with financial penalties at the centre of their relationship, a zero-sum dynamic emerges,” explained Matt Heider, CEO, Nautilus Labs. 

“Voyage charters do not incentivise optimal arrival times. Instead, they encourage sail-fast-then-wait behaviour or require uneconomic static speeds.”

“On the other hand, time charters often result in suboptimal performance: owners are not incentivised to make proactive improvements to vessel efficiency, while charterers are constrained by static speed clauses. Across all charter party agreements, the need for more data-driven collaboration is core to our industry achieving Net Zero.”

Note: The white paper, titled ‘The Wrong Speed for All the Wrong Reasons’ can be downloaded here.

 

Photo credit: Nautilus Labs, BIMCO
Published: 26 May, 2023

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Alternative Fuels

SMW 2025: Singapore to launch new standard for electric harbour craft this week

MPA and Enterprise Singapore will launch the Technical Reference 136 to provide guidelines for the development and operation of charging and battery swap systems for electric harbour craft, says minister.

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SMW 2025: Singapore to launch new standard for electric harbour craft this week

Minister of State for Transport Murali Pillai on Monday (24 March) said Singapore will launch a new standard for electric harbour crafts this week as part of Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore’s (MPA) efforts in facilitating decarbonisation for domestic harbour craft to achieve the republic’s national target of net-zero emissions by 2050.

“MPA and Enterprise Singapore will launch the new Technical Reference 136 this week to provide guidelines for the development and operation of charging and battery swap systems for electric harbour craft,” Murali said during his speech at the opening ceremony of the Singapore Maritime Week 2025 (SMW 2025). 

“This will enhance the safety and interoperability of electric harbour craft charging infrastructure.”

This is one of the initiatives MPA is undertaking to prepare for the bunkering of alternative marine fuels and decarbonising Singapore’s domestic maritime sector.

The minister said Singapore is taking steps to support the use of various fuels by the industry and position Singapore as a leading bunkering hub for alternative fuels.

“Over the past two years, we have supported trials of alternative fuels such as ammonia and methanol. These have contributed to the development of new technical references and IMO guidelines to enable the safe and efficient use of these marine fuels,” he said.

“MPA and Enterprise Singapore published the new Technical Reference 129 on Methanol Bunkering earlier this month, and we plan to launch a new standard for ammonia bunkering later this year.”

He added MPA has also recently allowed licensed bunker tankers to carry and deliver biofuels up to B30. 

“Pilots for up to B100 are ongoing, and we welcome bunker suppliers to engage in these pilots,” he said.

At the opening ceremony of SMW 2025, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, together with Murali, also launched Singapore’s first Maritime Digital Twin, an advanced simulation model developed by MPA in partnership with the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech) that integrates real-time data to enhance decision-making and improve management of maritime operations in Singapore waters.

Murali said the digital twin will integrate data from different sources and provide a platform for information sharing. This will enable the development of tools to optimise port efficiency and reliability above, at and below the sea surface.

“For example, the digital twin will enable scenario simulations and dispersion modelling, which can inform standard operating procedures for the safe bunkering of alternative fuels such as methanol and ammonia,” he said.

The minister added MPA will roll out the digital twin to pilot users later this year, before progressive implementation for the wider industry. 

“In future, we can extend this to the global maritime ecosystem through our Green and Digital Shipping Corridors with other countries and ports,” he said. 

Related: Singapore-registered bunker tankers can transport up to B30 biofuels from 7 March
Related: Singapore releases new standard on methanol bunkering, gears up for multi-fuel future

 

Photo credit: Maritime and Port Authority of SingaporePublished: 24 March, 2025

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Alternative Fuels

TFG Marine welcomes first of four ‘L’ series IMO type II bunkering tankers of Consort Bunkers

TFG Marine to operate Consort Bunkers’ bunkering tanker “Pearl Lavender”, capable of carrying methanol, biogrades up to B100, as well as conventional fuels, at Singapore port from April onwards.

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TFG Marine welcomes first of four 'L' series IMO type II bunkering tankers of Consort Bunkers

Global marine fuel supply and procurement firm TFG Marine on Friday (21 March) said it attended the delivery ceremony of bunker tanker Pearl Lavender at China Merchants Jinling shipyard in Nanjing. 

The IMO type II chemical bunkering tanker newbuilding is amongst others under long-term time charter from Singapore-based bunker supplier and logistics services provider Consort Bunkers Pte Ltd (Consort). 

"This state of the art vessel, capable of carrying methanol, biogrades up to B100, as well as conventional fuels, will be operational at the Port of Singapore from April 2025, further advancing our product offering to our client base in the APAC region," said TFG Marine. 

"As the first of four barges in this order, this investment builds on our commitment to low-carbon fuel bunkering infrastructure, reinforcing our vision for a multi-fuel future. 

"With methanol, biofuels, ammonia, and other alternative fuels playing an increasingly significant role alongside traditional marine fuels, we continue to support the industry's transition towards cleaner energy solutions."

Manifold Times previously reported that Consort first contracted six ‘L’ series 6,500 dwt IMO Type II bunker tankers with China Merchants Jinling Shipyard (Nanjing) Co., Ltd. in April 2023.

The ‘L’ series of bunker tanker newbuildings gained recognition from the China Association of The National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) as amongst the Chinese shipbuilding sector’s top 10 innovative vessels for 2024.

Last year, TFG Marine announced the signing of a long-term time charter agreement with Singapore-based bunker supplier and logistics services provider Consort Bunkers for four newbuild bunker tankers.

Related: TFG Marine to charter Consort Bunkers newbuild methanol bunker tankers in Singapore
Related: Consort Bunkers ‘L’ series newbuildings amongst top 10 ‘innovative achievements’ of Chinese shipbuilders
Related: Consort Bunkers ordering up to 20 x IMO Type II bunker tankers in region of USD $350 million

 

Photo credit: TFG Marine
Published: 24 March, 2025

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Sanctions

US OFAC sanctions first Chinese teapot refinery and oil tankers over Iranian links

Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical and its chief executive officer were added to OFAC’s sanctions list for purchasing and refining hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil.

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tommao wang on Unsplash

The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Thursday (20 March) sanctioned a “teapot” oil refinery and its chief executive officer for purchasing and refining hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil, including from vessels linked to Ansarallah, commonly known as the Houthis, and the Iranian Ministry of Defense of Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL).

Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical Co., Ltd (Luqing Petrochemical), a teapot refinery in Shandong Province, has purchased millions of barrels of Iranian oil worth approximately half a billion dollars. 

Luqing Petrochemical received Iranian oil transported by shadow fleet vessels, some of which have been sanctioned for their role transporting Iranian petroleum linked to the Houthis and MODAFL, including the MEHLE (IMO: 9191711) and the KOHANA (IMO: 9254082). In mid-2022, Luqing Petrochemical was identified as a buyer of Iranian oil associated with the Iranian military and Iranian military forces.

Luqing Petrochemical is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13902 for operating in the petroleum sector of the Iranian economy. PRC national Wang Xueqing serves as the chief executive officer and legal representative of Luqing Petrochemical, and is being concurrently designated pursuant to E.O. 13902 for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Luqing Petrochemical. 

“Teapot refinery purchases of Iranian oil provide the primary economic lifeline for the Iranian regime, the world’s leading state sponsor of terror,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. 

“The United States is committed to cutting off the revenue streams that enable Tehran’s continued financing of terrorism and development of its nuclear program.”

OFAC additionally imposed sanctions on 19 entities and vessels responsible for shipping millions of barrels of Iranian oil, comprising part of Iran’s “shadow fleet” of tankers supplying teapot refineries like Luqing Petrochemical. 

Iranian crude oil is transported to teapot refineries via a “shadow fleet” of vessels that usually engage in deceptive shipping practices, including automatic identification system (AIS) manipulation.

OFAC sanctioned eight vessels that constitute part of this fleet, including the Comoros-flagged NATALINA 7 (IMO: 9310147), Panama-flagged CATALINA 7 (IMO: 9310159), AURORA RILEY (IMO: 9181649), and VIOLA (IMO: 9254915), San Marino-flagged MONTROSE (IMO: 9281695), Barbados-flagged VOLANS (IMO: 9422988) and BRAVA LAKE (IMO: 9232876), and the currently unflagged TITAN (IMO: 9293741).

 

Photo credit: tommao wang on Unsplash
Published: 24 March, 2025

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