Alternative Fuels

Shipping needs act quickly to achieve 5% zero-emission bunker fuel target by 2030, report warns

Report revealed that while it is possible for scalable zero-emission fuels to make up 5% of international shipping fuels by 2030 – shipping’s breakthrough target – the window of opportunity will close soon.

Published

3 years ago

October 23, 2023

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UMAS, a partnership between UMAS International Ltd and the University College London (UCL) Energy Institute, on Wednesday (18 October) said a new report by them and two other partners found that while it is possible for scalable zero-emission fuels to make up 5% of international shipping fuels by 2030 – shipping’s breakthrough target – the window of opportunity will close soon and rapid action is required from the industry.

The report from UMAS, Getting to Zero Coalition, and Race to Zero, titled Climate Action in Shipping, Progress towards Shipping’s 2030 Breakthrough, painted a mixed picture when it comes to shipping’s core challenges of sourcing zero-emission fuels and deploying zero-emission vessels.

Zero-emission fuel bunker production currently in the pipeline could end up covering just a quarter of the fuel needed to deliver the breakthrough. However, if more projects are successful, zero-emission fuel production could be up to twice as much as is needed, even when accounting for other sectors’ fuel needs.

On vessels, the picture is less rosy. Despite headline-grabbing orders for methanol-fuelled ships, continuing the current trajectory of orders might only deliver one-fifth of the needed vessels to achieve the breakthrough target.

“The last 12 months have seen a positive shift in maritime decarbonisation efforts. Now is the time to see strong progress in terms of commitment for zero carbon fuels and freight from the industry so that the needed rapid scale-up of these fuels in the energy mix is achieved,” says Dr Domagoj Baresic, Research Associate at UCL and Consultant at UMAS, and lead author of the report.

Progress on policy is critical to enabling the needed scale-up of supply and demand. Major progress has been achieved with the adoption of an ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction strategy by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which will be followed in 2025 by the adoption of concrete global measures to achieve the strategy’s goals. Because these measures are to be implemented after 2027, industry and national governments will need to make concerted, immediate efforts (e.g. through green corridors and national policy) to stimulate supply and demand in the intervening period and ensure that the industry is prepared to deliver on the IMO strategy before 2030.

“With the revision of the IMO’s greenhouse gas strategy, the industry’s direction of travel is clear. Especially in these early years, we need to be able to assess how fast we’re moving in that direction. This report shows that the industry is progressing, but that action still needs to accelerate,’’ said Jesse Fahnestock, Project Director at the Global Maritime Forum.

Launched in conjunction with the Global Maritime Forum’s Annual Summit in Athens, the report assessed progress towards the goal of having scalable zero-emission fuels account for 5% of international shipping fuels by 2030. This is the threshold needed to rapidly scale the uptake of such fuels and achieve full decarbonisation by at least 2050. Notably, the recently revised IMO strategy includes a new level of ambition and sets an important target of at least 5% – striving for 10% – uptake of zero or near-zero GHG emission fuels by 2030.

The report marked a significant milestone on the road to COP28 later this year in Dubai, providing a stocktake of progress. It evaluates the shipping breakthrough goal against five key levers for change: technology and supply; finance; policy; demand; and civil society action.

“The technology to facilitate production, distribution and bunkering of SZEF is progressing well, however the extent of its scale-up throughout the rest of the decade is not guaranteed. To become fully aligned with the 2030 5% breakthrough target, all sectors of the maritime industry must rally around the historic ambitions set out in the 2023 IMO GHG Strategy and work to establish a robust demand base for SZEF, thereby providing producers with the confidence they need to invest in new capacity projects.” said James Stewart, Research Assistant at UCL and Consultant at UMAS, and co-author of the report.

The report indicated that financing for achieving the breakthrough is partially on track, with the amount of shipping finance covered by the Poseidon Principles surpassing USD 200 billion and the climate alignment of these investments improving from 4% to 6% on a weighted average basis. The ability of the industry to continue to improve alignment as requirements tighten remains to be seen.

“Evidence suggests that clear signals needed for ship owners to make long-term decisions towards sustainable zero-emission fuel-capable vessels with the least amount of commercial uncertainty are still lacking, despite the industry being at a critical juncture where a significant structural shift needs to occur. It is therefore imperative that strong, effective legislation and incentives are rapidly put into place to catalyse the necessary transition.” said Dr Vishnu Prakash, co-author of the report.

“The key message from this work is that there remains insufficient current and future demand (both in terms of vessels and cargo) to match the supply required to be on track with the breakthrough goal. Despite the numerous headline grabbing announcements for orders dual fuel methanol ships (assuming they actually run on e-methanol) they form a tiny fraction of the overall no. of ships required.” said Dr Nishatabbas Rehmatulla, Principal Research Fellow at UCL and Principal Consultant at UMAS, co-author of the report.

Note: Read the full report “Climate Action in Shipping: Tracking Progress towards shipping’s breakthrough goals” here.

Photo credit: william william on Unsplash
Published: 23 October, 2023

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LNG Bunkering

Shell expands LNG bunkering footprint in Spain with Valencia

As one of the region’s key maritime hubs, the company said Valencia expands the options available to shipowners seeking LNG supply along major shipping routes.

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2 days ago

August 14, 2026

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Shell expands LNG bunkering footprint in Spain with Valencia

British oil giant Shell on Thursday (13 August) said Valencia has joined its growing network of bunkering locations, making LNG available as a marine fuel.

The successful completion of the first LNG bunkering operation in Valencia marked an important milestone for Spain and further strengthened Shell’s LNG supply capabilities across the Mediterranean.

In a video shared by the company, bunkering vessel Alice Consulich was shown supplying an undisclosed volume of LNG to the container ship MSC Sabrina.

“As one of the region’s key maritime hubs, Valencia expands the options available to shipowners seeking LNG supply along major shipping routes,” Shell said in a social media post.

Shell said the achievement reflected the strong collaboration across the maritime value chain, including MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, the Port of Valencia and Fratelli Cosulich Group.

“We look forward to making more LNG bunker deliveries in Valencia and across the Mediterranean as LNG infrastructure and capabilities continue to expand,” the company said.

Photo credit: Shell
Published: 14 August, 2026

LNG Bunkering

Énestas and Power LNG join forces on Galveston bunkering

Énestas will provide capital, LNG transport and storage equipment, and downstream expertise to support Power LNG’s planned liquefaction and marine bunkering facility on Pelican Island.

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2 days ago

August 14, 2026

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Stabilis Solutions enter 10-year LNG bunkering supply deal for Port of Galveston

Power LNG (Power LNG) and Mexico’s LNG infrastructure and downstream natural gas company Énestas on Wednesday (12 August) announced the execution of definitive agreements establishing a strategic partnership to accelerate the development of LNG infrastructure at the Port of Galveston.

Under the agreement, Énestas will provide capital, LNG transportation and storage equipment, and downstream operating expertise to support the development of the Harborside Terminal and Project Seawolf, Power LNG’s planned LNG liquefaction and marine bunkering facility on Pelican Island.

The partnership creates an immediate pathway to begin LNG distribution by truck while Project Seawolf is under development, supporting marine fueling, virtual pipeline customers, industrial users, and LNG exports throughout the Gulf Coast, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

“Our vision has always been to establish Galveston as the premier LNG hub for the Gulf Coast,” said Austin Terry, Founder and CEO of Power LNG.

“Énestas brings years of operational experience, proven LNG infrastructure, and a talented team that understands how to deliver LNG safely and efficiently. Together, we can immediately begin serving customers while laying the foundation for one of the most strategic LNG bunkering facilities in North America.”

Project Seawolf will provide LNG for marine bunkering, truck loading, virtual pipeline distribution, and international exports. The facility is strategically located at the Port of Galveston, serving one of the fastest-growing cruise, cargo, and energy corridors in the United States.

For Énestas, the transaction represented an important milestone in the company’s international growth strategy.

“This partnership represents a natural evolution for Énestas as we expand our downstream LNG business into the United States,” said Caio Zapata, Chief Executive Officer of Énestas.

“For more than a decade, Énestas has developed and operated LNG infrastructure throughout Mexico, helping customers transition to cleaner, more reliable energy. Partnering with Power LNG allows us to leverage that experience in one of the most attractive LNG markets in North America. We see tremendous opportunities in marine bunkering, virtual pipeline logistics, industrial LNG supply, and exports to Latin America and the Caribbean, and we are excited to build that future together.”

The companies expect the partnership to support near-term LNG truck loading operations while advancing the long-term development of Project Seawolf, which is designed to become a regional hub for LNG production, marine fueling, and distribution.

The collaboration also establishes a platform to pursue additional downstream LNG opportunities throughout the Gulf Coast, utilising Énestas’ operational expertise together with Power LNG’s project development capabilities.

Photo credit: Port of Galveston
Published: 14 August, 2026

LNG Bunkering

Stabilis delivers more than 150,000 cbm of LNG bunker fuel at Galveston

Company says the advancement of its proposed Stabilis Galveston LNG Facility is a natural progression of its established LNG bunkering footprint in Galveston.

Published

2 days ago

August 14, 2026

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Stabilis delivers more than 150,000 cbm of LNG bunker fuel at Galveston

Clean energy production solutions provider Stabilis Solutions (Stabilis) on Thursday (13 August) said it has completed 97 LNG bunkering operations and delivered more than 150,000 m³ of LNG to customers in the Port of Galveston.

“As the only physical supplier of LNG on the Gulf Coast to reach this milestone, we’ve earned a reputation as a trusted, proven operator — both with local Galveston stakeholders and with the world’s largest cruise operator,” the company said in a social media post.

“That trust is reflected in the 10-year LNG offtake agreement we executed in December 2025.”

The company said the advancement of its proposed Stabilis Galveston LNG Facility is a natural progression of its established LNG bunkering footprint in Galveston.

“As a Houston-based company, we believe in the Texas economy and the future growth of the Port of Galveston,” it added.

“That belief is why we’ve invested heavily over the past four years in the planning, permitting, and engineering design work to develop the most advanced, derisked, shovel-ready small-scale LNG liquefaction project on the Gulf Coast.”

Manifold Times previously reported Stabilis stating that the proposed Stabilis Galveston LNG Facility is anticipated to be in production by the third quarter of 2028.

It will come complete with the delivery of the first new-build, dedicated Jones Act-compliant LNG bunker barge in the Galveston/Houston area.

This comes following Stabilis receiving a Letter of Recommendation from the US Coast Guard following their formal review of the proposed Stabilis Galveston LNG Facility and associated waterfront LNG loading, marine transportation, and LNG bunkering operations in the Port of Galveston.

Photo credit: Stabilis Solutions
Published: 14 August, 2026