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Pacific Green: Why gas scrubbers continue to be the future of marine emissions control

A study by independent Norwegian research group SINTEF confirmed burning HSFO with a scrubber has a lower carbon footprint than using LSFO.

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Scrubber technology firm Pacific Green Technologies (PGT) on Monday (22 June) published an article supporting the relevance of scrubbers in reducing emissions from the shipping industry while clarifying popular misconceptions of burning HSFO: 

The coronavirus pandemic has been a huge global tragedy. It’s also smashed the economies of many nations and laid waste to whole sectors of industry. It’s one of those once-in-a-lifetime occurrences that you wish hadn't happened in your time on the planet.

One of the sectors that has been most notably hit hard is the oil sector. As the pandemic took hold, as all forms of transport were paralysed by the crisis, global oil demand collapsed by more than 16 million barrels a day.

Simultaneously, a production war between Saudi Arabia and Russia saw oil supplies surge - it was a catastrophic cocktail that sent oil market prices into a tailspin. For brief periods in April, some oil futures were trading in the negative.

Dated Brent, the benchmark used to price more than two-thirds of the world’s oil, is now back to over $42/b (as of June 21) after hitting a 21-year low in April. Some market participants expect it to nudge towards $45/b in the short-term and higher still as the year progresses.

This will be good news for those shipowners who have installed marine gas scrubbers, as a rise in oil prices will likely be reflected in the spread between high sulphur fuel oil and low sulphur fuel oil, a spread which has been, at its height, over $300 but is now hovering around the $50-$55 mark.

As the spread widens, so scrubbers become more attractive

Most shipowners believe that the spread will increase again, after all, LSFO requires blending of distillates, which, in comparison to HSFO, are expensive and will become more so as the oil price rises. LSFO fuel is a much higher quality fuel, creating a premium in price.

And, as the spread widens, so scrubbers become more attractive, not just as a way to meet the new sulphur emission standards established by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in January, but as a way to save substantial amounts of money.

It’s not as if there is any chance that HSFO will simply disappear.

Even if newly-built refineries don’t produce HSFO in the medium-to-short-term, the vast majority of refineries are not being upgraded to exploit the extra levels of refining and consequently abandon HSFO. The investment required is vast and many refineries cannot afford the investment, especially now.

Many of those who had planned to upgrade their refineries have postponed or delayed those upgrades since the start of the crisis, so HSFO will be relatively plentiful in supply for the foreseeable future.

It’s not just about the money

On price alone then, over the coming years, a scrubber will likely be seen as a wise investment.

But it’s not just about money. One thread of debate since the virus emptied the skies and seas, thereby reducing emissions, has been that we need to take more rapid action on climate heating.

The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO’s) new emissions regulations, which took effect on 1 January 2020, and were aimed at reducing the sulphur content of ships' fuel oil from 3.50% m/m. to 0.50% m/m, already sought to reposition the maritime industry as a partner in positive environmental and social change.

In meeting the requirements of IMO 2020, shipowners had - and still have - three primary alternatives available: use <0.5% low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO), install a marine scrubber, which allows continued use of high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO), or switch fuel type entirely to liquefied natural gas.

The industry debate about which is the best compliance solution has become increasingly polarised. And, as is often the case in such situations, many of the arguments have become absurdly oversimplified and reductionist.

Fitting a scrubber, so the story goes, is just for shipowners who want to save a buck. Switching to LSFO is for those owners who care about supporting the IMO’s plans for a healthier environment.

This is an alarmingly unsophisticated view.

A study published last year by independent Norwegian research organisation SINTEF confirmed that burning high-sulphur fuel oil with a scrubber has a lower carbon footprint than using LSFO.

To understand LSFO’s true carbon footprint, you have to assess the fuel’s full lifecycle.

Measuring the ecological cost of LSFO cannot be limited to the narrow view of its use at sea.

According to SINTEF’s chief scientist Dr Elizabeth Lindstad, the energy required in the global production of LSFO produces far more greenhouse gas (GHG) than in the production of HSFO.

The difference is also compounded by scale.

With so many ships using LSFO as their IMO 2020 compliance solution, the supply of LSFO has had to climb drastically to meet demand.

With more distillate fuel production will come more GHG production.

In her report, Dr Lindstad concludes that, measured from well to wake, using HSFO with an exhaust gas scrubber is the most environmentally beneficial way of complying with IMO 2020.

Research submitted earlier this year to the IMO by Germany and Finland also confirmed that the overall effect of burning LSFO is environmentally negative.

LSFO is a dirtier fuel than HSFO used with a scrubber

Very low sulphur fuel oil was specifically developed recently to create a fuel that would comply with the IMO’s 2020 sulphur requirements. It has not had widespread use for a prolonged period of time and it is not fully understood.

The Finnish/German research describes the results from controlled burnings of various marine fuels - their research shows that blended LSFO showed a significant increase in black carbon emissions.

Second only to CO2 in terms of the maritime industry’s contribution to climate change, black carbon is a dangerous greenhouse gas.

It is responsible for 7% to 21% of shipping’s overall GHG equivalent impact. LSFO, therefore, is a dirtier fuel than HSFO used with a scrubber.

For many, such findings are counterintuitive and can therefore be dismissed. But this is a nuanced debate, and the science favours scrubbers.

The operational and engineering risks of switching to LSFO are significant

And, even then, it’s not just about price and environmental concerns.

Worryingly little attention seems to have been paid to the operational and engineering risks of switching to LSFO.

Many shipowners have been unprepared for the technical difficulties of suddenly running a ship on a different fuel.

Low and high sulphur fuels are not interchangeable. Fuel management on vessels has to ensure that high sulphur fuel is not mixed with low sulphur fuel - you can't just switch between the two.

More significantly, LSFO fuels can vary a lot between batches.

Each batch can have different burning characteristics and LSFO can very quickly damage an engine if not handled correctly.

LSFO fuels are blended products - storing these fuels on board requires much more preparation and skill. Transitioning from one batch of oil to the next becomes a guessing game in which the booby prize is an inoperative ship.

HSFO and LSFO also differ significantly in terms of viscosity, with residual fuel and MGO, for example, exhibiting a density difference of approximately 8%.

HSFO-capable engine equipment generally requires a relatively high fuel viscosity, 10-20 centistokes (cSt). Low sulphur distillate fuels have a much lower viscosity, usually within 2-11 cSt.

If viscosity is too low, the moving components of the injection equipment will lack sufficient lubrication. The resulting damage could include fuel pump seizures and increased leakage in fuel pumps, engine-mounted pumps, and fuel handling pumps.

Viscosity and lubricity are closely connected. Sulphur is used to increase the lubricity of fuel; low sulphur fuels could provide ship’s engines with insufficient lubrication for components such as the pump plunger.

However, the opposite problem is also a risk - compensating with over-lubrication is a regular and damaging occurrence.

These operational worries were borne out in February this year, when Muhammad Usman, product manager at construction engineering firm Lloyd’s Register, told delegates at a marine conference that port inspections have found a multitude of problems with vessels caused by the switch to LSFO.

“Issues found have been increased wear of engine cylinder components; unstable combustion; increased sludge issue at purifiers and fuel solidifying in the tank, particularly at cold climates,” said Usman.

And just last week at a marine webinar hosted by price reporting agency S&P Global Platts, it was suggested that Europe was emerging as a global hotspot for quality issues with the new very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) blends.

Scrubbers offer shipowners full fuel flexibility and eliminate concerns about fuel compatibility

"The biggest problems we have with fuel quality are in the ARA area," one delegate said during the webinar.

"We see different types of problems, such as total sediment potential, even a little bit of sulphur out of spec, a variety of hiccups. I'm a little bit surprised that the market doesn't seem to be able to get this right yet."

In contrast, scrubbers offer shipowners full fuel flexibility and eliminate concerns of new blended fuel qualities and compatibility issues.

And, rather than causing problems to the inner workings of ships’ engines, scrubbers can be fitted to newbuilds or retrofitted to almost any engine.

Scrubbers are also a hedge against the further tightening of emissions regulations. For instance, not only is PGMT’s ENVI-Marine™ system smaller, more efficient, cheaper to install and costs around 20% less to run than the competitions’ product but it delivers marine scrubbing efficiency equivalent to an astonishing 0.0047% sulphur fuel.

And each iteration is aimed to make the device more scalable and easier to build, while constantly improving the scrubbing efficiency - this is technology that will meet emissions targets for many years to come.

Scrubbers make more economic, environmental and operational sense than any other solution to the IMO 2020 conundrum. Even in these difficult times, marine gas scrubbers are still the future.


Photo credit: EGCSA

Published: 25 June, 2020

 

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Business

Singapore: Ang Wee Keong from IMDA appointed as new MPA Chief Executive

Ang will relinquish his IMDA appointment as Assistant Chief Executive (International) of the Info-Communications and will officially take over from Teo Eng Dih from 16 June.

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Singapore: Ang Wee Keong from IMDA appointed as new MPA Chief Executive

Singapore’s Ministry of Transport on Tuesday (29 April) said Mr Ang Wee Keong, currently the Assistant Chief Executive (International) of the Info-Communications Media Development Authority (IMDA), will concurrently be appointed as Chief Executive (Designate) of the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) from 1 May to 15 June 2025. 

He will relinquish his IMDA appointment and be appointed Chief Executive of MPA from 16 June 2025. He will succeed Mr Teo Eng Dih, who will be appointed Deputy Secretary (Special Duties) at the Ministry of Transport with effect from 16 June. 

Mr Teo will remain as a member of the MPA Board until he steps down as CE MPA. Mr Ang will be appointed as a board member with effect from 16 June 2025.

“The Ministry of Transport thanks Mr Teo Eng Dih for his leadership and contributions as Chief Executive of MPA, and welcomes Mr Ang Wee Keong,” the ministry added. 

Mr Teo Eng Dih (张英智)

As the Chief Executive of the MPA, Mr Teo made significant contributions to grow Singapore’s International Maritime Centre and the PIER71TM startup ecosystem. During his tenure, the Port of Singapore attained new records in vessel arrivals, container throughput, bunker sales and registrations under the Singapore Registry of Ships. MPA was also recognised as one of the key global regulators by Lloyd’s List. These milestones were reached amidst a complex global operating environment marked by geopolitical uncertainties, supply chain disruptions and technological shifts affecting the flow of goods and supplies worldwide.  

Mr Ang Wee Keong (洪伟强) 

As the Assistant Chief Executive (International) of IMDA, Mr Ang made significant contributions in advancing Singapore’s digital interests and thought leadership in the international arena. He strengthened Singapore’s network of digital economy partnerships, and expanded collaboration through platforms like the ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting, Forum of Small States and Asia Tech x Singapore (ATxSG). He also oversaw the formulation of forward-thinking policies and regulations in digital technology and services to advance the growth of Singapore’s digital economy, including the upcoming Digital Infrastructure Act to enhance the resilience and security of systemically important digital infrastructure.

 

Photo credit: Singapore Polytechnic
Published: 30 April, 2025

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Technology

TFG Marine to launch of ZeroNorth e-BDNs at Port of Sohar after Singapore success

Kenneth Dam announced the successful trial and imminent roll-out of ZeroNorth’s electronic bunker delivery note solution for its customers in the Port of Sohar, in Oman.

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TFG Marine to launch ZeroNorth e-BDNs at Port of Sohar after success in Singapore

Global marine fuel supply and procurement firm TFG Marine on Tuesday (29 April) announced the company’s successful trial and imminent roll-out of ZeroNorth’s electronic bunker delivery note (e-BDN) solution for its customers in the Port of Sohar, in Oman.

A first for the Middle East region following the successful deployment of the same technology earlier this year by TFG Marine at the Port of Singapore. The eBDN trial in Oman was completed in collaboration with ZeroNorth and SGTraDex, using the Singapore standards as a benchmark.

Kenneth Dam, Global Head of Bunkering, said: "We’re excited to partner with ZeroNorth, Fratelli Cosulich Group Bunkers, SGTraDex and SOHAR Port and Freezone to shortly introduce e-BDNs to our customers here in Oman.”

“This technology, that we have already successfully introduced in Singapore is yet another step in modernising our industry. It will streamline the bunker delivery process, cut administrative burdens, enhance digital documentation and help build a smarter, more connected bunkering sector.”

“We remain committed to establishing e-BDNs as a global standard for bunker fuel delivery and will continue to work closely with port authorities to advocate for and deploy this technology across our operations.”

Dam made the announcement at the Oman Maritime, Ports and Energy Forum, during the panel discussion on The Transformative Power of Data: The Evolving Role of Digitalisation in Shipping and Bunkering.

Dam added the fully digital solution — accessible through TFG Marine’s mobile app and integrated with SGTraDex’s digital infrastructure, — will enable the inclusion of additional data, such as mass flow meter readings during fuel deliveries.

“By integrating this technology, we will drive significant improvements in efficiency, accuracy, compliance, and sustainability across our operations, complementing the global mass flow meter rollout across our fleet and reinforcing TFG Marine’s position at the forefront of the modern bunkering industry,” he said. 

Manifold Times previously reported TFG Marine announcing the introduction of ZeroNorth’s e-BDNs for its customers in Singapore during 23rd Singapore International Bunkering Conference (SIBCON) by the end of 2024.

In November last year, TFG Marine announced its first digitalised marine fuel delivery in Singapore using electronic bunker delivery notes (e-BDNs).

Its team supplied VLSFO bunker fuel to Pacific Basin Shipping Limited’s Illovo River bulk carrier, marking the first of four bunkering deliveries that month where this new technology was successfully deployed. 

Related: SIBCON 2024: TFG Marine to launch ZeroNorth e-BDNs in Singapore
Related: TFG Marine achieves first digitalised bunker fuel delivery with e-BDN in Singapore

 

Photo credit: TFG Marine
Published: 30 April, 2025

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Biofuel

Hercules Tanker Management vessel “Mount Kibo” takes on B30 bio bunker fuel

HTM said its tanker was successfully supplied with B30 bunkers by tanker “Hercules Sky”, another HTM-owned vessel and operated by Peninsula, marking the first biofuel supply to the HTM fleet.

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Hercules Tanker Management vessel “Mount Kibo” takes on B30 bio bunker fuel

Hercules Tanker Management (HTM) on Tuesday (29 April) announced that its tanker Mount Kibo has been successfully supplied with B30 bunkers by tanker Hercules Sky, another HTM-owned vessel which is operated by Peninsula.

The operation marked the first biofuel supply to the HTM fleet.

HTM is the shipping venture launched last September by John A. Bassadone, founder and CEO of independent marine fuel supplier Peninsula. 

HTM said the operation carried out in the Strait of Gibraltar aligns with the recent discussions at MEPC 83, where key decisions were made to advance maritime decarbonisation, including new fuel standards and a global pricing mechanism for emissions. 

“Additionally, this initiative supports the objectives of the FuelEU Maritime Regulation, which promotes the use of renewable, low-carbon fuels and clean energy technologies for ships,” it said.   

“By utilising biofuels, we are contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and supporting the industry's transition towards cleaner energy solutions.”

Related: Peninsula founder launches shipping firm Hercules Tanker Management
Related: Peninsula “Hercules Sky” to supply biofuel bunkers in Gibraltar Strait

 

Photo credit: Hercules Tanker Management
Published: 30 April, 2025

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