CMA CGM with the support of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore started biofuel bunkering for 32 ships.
CMA CGM’s six-month global trial will involve up to 32 containerships running on different blends of biofuel to measure carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions in order to obtain a trend analysis, which will be shared with the respective flag administration including MPA.
Some of these vessels will be fuelled in Singapore with B24 biofuel, which comprises 24% used cooking oil methyl ester (UCOME) in the advanced biofuel blended with conventional fuels.
Ranging from ship sizes between 2,200 and 10,640 teu, these vessels on trial will serve several trade lanes including Asia-South America, Asia-Africa, Asia-Oceania, Asia-Mediterranean, North Europe–Oceania and North Europe-North America.
B24 can reduce carbon emissions by 21%, CMA CGM claimed. Completely compatible with modern ship engines, this drop-in fuel made from used cooking oil can be run on all vessel types without requiring technical, safety or design adjustments, enabling ships to quickly start limiting their emissions.
Stéphane Courquin, CEO of CMA CGM Asia Pacific, said:
This global biofuel trial and bunkering in Singapore advances CMA CGM’s energy transition, paving the way for biofuel to scale up as one of the solutions to decarbonise shipping.
“With the use of biofuels being assessed over multiple key tradelanes and onboard ships of various sizes, we shall gather a comprehensive data set to verify the biofuel’s performance as a marine fuel and gain insights into facilitating a wider adoption of biofuel as a clean fuel.”
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32 CMA CGM ships earmarked for biofuel trial, February 24, 2022
