Gram Car Carriers will begin using biofuel on three of its midsize car carriers in conjunction with K Line.
The Oslo-based vessel lessor said on Thursday that the 4,200-ceu Viking Ocean (built 2012), Viking Diamond and Viking Coral (both built 2011) will take on the fuel in Singapore this month.
“We support the green mobility shift,” chief executive Georg Whist said.
“This means that [Gram Car Carriers] commits to supporting the transition of both vehicles and their logistic chain towards a zero-emission future in close cooperation with leading customers such as K Line.”
Biofuels — which are chemically identical to conventional fuels and emit CO2, but are produced using biomass that consumes the greenhouse gas, thus cutting emissions — have been popular in the car carrier sector.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen and Hoegh Autoliners have made moves with an eye to using biofuels as a stopgap on the way to ammonia fuels.
Both companies have newbuildings on order that will be capable of running on either ammonia or methanol.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen has announced several new contracts this year, many of which contain carbon-cutting measures, including the use of biofuels.
Gram Car Carriers also described biofuels as a means to transition away from fossil fuels.
Its three ships all trade at least in part in Asia, according to automatic identification system data.
The Viking Coral, which is on charter until May 2026, is engaged in cross-Pacific and Australia trading, while the Viking Diamond sails between Asia and Australia, and the Viking Ocean largely sails to the North American west coast.
The Viking Diamond and Viking Ocean are under charter until March 2028.
