Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) will begin using biofuel on its ships, the Swiss liner giant said.
The company announced Saturday that it will start burning a 30% biofuel blend on ships calling at Rotterdam after it conducted trials on a 10% mixture.
"We are pleased to see these trials completed successfully and look forward to now using biofuel on our vessels as a routine matter," said Bud Darr, vice president of maritime policy and government affairs at MSC.
MSC expects to lower CO2 emissions by 15% to 20% for ships using the biofuel blend, Darr said.
“The potential CO2 reduction in the bio component of these fuels could reach 80% to 90%, which we will monitor and confirm over time,” he said.
Such a policy could help shipping companies achieve the 2030 IMO targets on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to reduce emission levels, he said.
The IMO is calling for a 40% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030, compared with 2008, and a 50% reduction by 2050.
Come 1 January, the IMO will prohibit all ships from burning bunker with sulphur content above 0.1%.
Shipowners plan to comply with these mandates by burning compliant fuels, such as marine gas oil, low-sulphur fuel oil or LNG, or by using high-sulphur fuel oil with exhaust gas scrubbers.
The Diego Aponte-led container carrier did not say when it will begin using the new fuels in Rotterdam. Nor did MSC provide details on its biofuel blend or say how many of its 471 boxships will run on it.
An email seeking details from MSC, which has former AP Moller-Maersk chief operating officer Soren Toft lined up as its next chief executive, was not immediately returned.
