Trading giant Vitol has taken delivery of a new bunker tanker in Singapore which it says can deliver pure biofuel bunkers.
Vitol Bunkers said the 8,000-dwt Marine Future (built 2024) will enable it to offer a range of biofuel blends, including B24, B30 and up to B100, on customer request.
The company described the Singapore-flagged vessel as its first specialised bunker barge in the city state, which strengthens its position in Asia’s expanding biofuel bunker market.
The IMO Type 2 tanker was built at China’s Zhejiang Shenzhou Shipbuilding and can carry about 7,000 tonnes of biofuels.
Vitol said the current fleet of bunker tankers in Singapore are classified as “oil tankers” and are therefore restricted to a maximum of 25% bio component in biofuel blends.
“This new bunker tanker has no such restriction, hence can deliver bunker fuels consisting of 100% bio component (B100),” it added.
Vitol Asia head Mike Muller said the vessel can also be re-configured to supply methanol should there be demand.
“We are delighted to now be able to offer our maritime customers the option to take up to 100% bio component bunker fuel here in Singapore and play our part in advancing the port’s decarbonisation efforts,” he added.
Biofuels are described as a key pathway for the hard-to-abate shipping sector to mitigate emissions.
Biofuel sales in Singapore reached 520,000 tonnes in 2023 according to figures from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), a significant increase on the prior year when volumes were 140,000 tonnes.
Vitol Bunkers was the fourth-largest supplier of biofuels in 2023 behind Maersk Oil Trading, Chevron and BP, according to MPA figures.
Alternative fuels made up just 1.2% of total bunkers supplied in Singapore last year, but the MPA said it expected this to continue with “good growth prospects in the coming year”.
Vitol Bunkers currently operates a fleet of 22 bunker tankers but has said that “several more” IMO Type 2 bunker tankers will be delivered throughout 2024. VesselsValue says Vitol has another seven such vessels on order in China.
