Fuels Lubes News

Shipping fuel regulations introduced in 2020 have led to a substantial cut in sulphur dioxide (SO2) pollution, but may also have made the ocean warmer by reducing cloud cover, according to a modelling study in a paper published late on Thursday.International Maritime Organization (IMO) rules to tackle marine pollution forced shippers to cut their fuel sulphur content to 0.5% from 3.5%, leading to an 80% decline in SO2 emissions, according to a research team led by Tianle Yuan at the University of Maryland.SO2…

Chevron announced it has appointed Ayten Yavuz as the new General Manager, Global Marine Lubricants.Yavuz joined Chevron in 1991 and has held notable positions over three decades at the company. Most recently, Yavuz was the Regional Manager of Chevron Marine Products for North West Europe and the Americas.In her new role, Yavuz will be responsible for charting the course toward profitable growth, innovation and development within the marine business sector, Chevron said. She will…

Neste is partnering with PTL Marine to provide Neste MY Renewable Diesel to the marine sector across the State of California.California’s Commercial Harbor Craft (CHC) regulation, established by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), took effect on January 1, 2023. This regulation requires commercial harbor craft vessels in the state to use renewable diesel (also known locally as R99 or R100) instead of ultra-low sulphur diesel (ULSD), to limit emissions such as particulate matter and nitrogen oxides for vessels operating in the state’s ports and near the coast.

Chevron Marine Products’ Taro Ultra Advanced 40 oil has successfully passed NOL (No Objection Letter) requirements by engine manufacturer WinGD. This follows the earlier NOL award for Taro Ultra Advanced 40 from MAN Energy Solutions. This latest test validates the suitability of the oil for use in WinGD engines operating with liquid fuels containing sulphur in the range 0.00<1.50 % m/m, which includes very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO). The test also approved the general usage…

Contaminated marine fuels from several suppliers led to fouled engines on about a dozen vessels operating from the U.S. Gulf Coast this spring, according to Lloyd's Register and marine fuel testing service VPS.The tainted fuel was the first major occurrence along the U.S.

A fuel contamination issue led to the grounding of a Washington State Ferries (WSF) vessel in April, the operator said in a recent update.The 440-foot double-ended Jumbo Class ferry Walla Walla was traveling from Bremerton, Wash. to Seattle with 596 passengers and 15 crew members on board when it ran aground in Rich Passage, just off Bainbridge Island, Wash., at approximately 4:30 p.m. on April 15. No injuries, pollution or damage to the vessel was reported.At the time of the incident…

Supermajor Shell anounced its subsidiaries in Switzerland, the UK, US and Sweden have entered into agreements to acquire the environmentally considerate lubricants (ECLs) business of the PANOLIN Group.The transaction includes the PANOLIN brand, ECL product formulations, intellectual property, technical expertise and technology, international customer base and portfolio of products – for hydraulics, gears, universal tractor transmission oils, biodegradable engine oils (HDEO), turbine oils…

Chevron Marine Lubricants said it made its first delivery of a 40 BN Category II lube oil on August 30, in a breakthrough moment for operators of MAN ES Mk9 and above two-stroke engines, when it supplied a stem of its new Taro Ultra Advanced 40 to SIEM Car Carriers.“We are very pleased that Taro Ultra Advanced 40 is now available to our customers and that we have successfully made the first delivery,” said Pat McCloud, General Manager, Chevron Global Marine Lubricants. “From September, it will be available at major ports across Europe and Asia Pacific, including Singapore and Rotterdam.

Biofuels supplier GoodFuels announced it has supplied sustainable marine biofuel to NYK’s bulk carrier Frontier Explorer, in the first such delivery to a major maritime client since the company opened its Singapore office.Frontier Explorer was refueled with biofuel in a blend with VLSFO during its port call to Singapore on July 5, en route from Australia to India.The delivery was the first to be managed under GoodFuels’ partnership with ITOCHU, which was announced in May. ITOCHU was responsible for logistics…

A U.S.-registered containership is reportedly leaking lubricant into the water near Anchorage, Alaska.On Thursday evening, personnel at the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Anchorage Command Center received a notification that the 645-foot Maunalei was leaking lubricant while transiting to the Port of Alaska. The vessel, owned by Matson, Inc., was said to be discharging a biodegradable, environmentally acceptable lubricant (EAL) at a rate of approximately six gallons per hour. Given the low toxicity of the lubricant…

Vitol Bunkers said has extended its bunkering services to Jebel Ali—the largest container port in the Middle East—and to Dubai's Port Rashid Cruise Terminal, from July 2022.According to Vitol, the move will help it to address the supply requirements of strategic marine customers in key Middle Eastern locations.Vessels visiting Jebel Ali will have access to Vitol Bunkers’ marine products produced at the Vitol-owned FRCL refinery in Fujairah.  These include a range of marine fuel grades as well as bio-marine fuels for customers wishing to mitigate their carbon emissions.

Marine fuel sales at the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah, third largest bunkering hub in the world, fell to a four-month low in June as high bunker premiums and tight supplies capped uptake.Total bunker sales volumes were down 13% month-on-month at 647,184 cubic meters (about 619,602 tonnes) in June, based on latest data from the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone published by industry information service S&P Global Commodity Insights."Fujairah barges have been trading above Singapore since mid-June.

Classification society ClassNK informs it has released the "Guidelines for Ships Using Alternative Fuels (Edtion 2.0)," which sets forth safety requirements for ships fueled by methanol, ethanol, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and ammonia. In particular, specific requirements for ammonia-fueled ships have been added to provide guidance for the design of alternative-fueled ships.The guidelines describe safety requirements for methanol, ethanol and ammonia-fueled ships. Taking into account the risks posed by the use of alternative fuels against ships…

Chevron Corporation earlier this month completed its previously announced acquisition of biodiesel production company Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (REG) following approval by REG stockholders.“We have brought together companies with complementary capabilities, assets, and customer relationships to make Chevron one of the leading renewable fuels companies in the United States,” said Mark Nelson, executive vice president of Downstream & Chemicals for Chevron. “Chevron now offers our customers an expanded suite of cost-effective…

Bureau Veritas (BV) and TotalEnergies are studying ammonia leak mitigation and treatment in an effort to de-risking the use of ammonia as a marine fuel.The joint preliminary study has evaluated the health and safety risks from ammonia leaks for crew and passengers and pinpointed key safety criteria. So far, the study has examined different leak scenarios for single-wall and double-wall containment, as well as during bunkering operations – also providing key insights on the efficiency of ventilation and vapor processing systems…

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $59 million to accelerate the production of biofuels and bioproducts to reduce emissions in industries such as maritime.The department said it is focused on applied research, development and deployment to improve the performance and reduce the cost of biofuel production technologies and scale-up production systems in partnership with industry. "By reducing costs and technical risks, these efforts can help pave the way for the biofuels industry to deploy commercial-scale integrated biorefineries," the DOE said.

The $300 billion bunkering market is at a critical juncture due to the double whammy of the geopolitical crisis and the uncertainty surrounding the regulatory framework pertaining to the decarbonization of the shipping industry.“Bunkering has been hit from the trickledown effect of the sanctions against Russia, and this of course has had a serious impact on prices. Pre-war, the global prices were around $750-$850 per ton, and now we are looking at prices above $1,000,” said Alexander Prokopakis…

Sinopec Fuel Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd aims to raise its monthly bunker sales volumes by more than 50% after it received a license from the Singapore government this month, the company’s general manager said on Monday.Chinese refiners are expanding their foothold in the global marine fuels sector by increasing sales and output of 0.5% low sulphur fuel oil at key ports in Zhoushan, in China, and Singapore in recent years.The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) awarded the bunker license to Sinopec's Singapore fuel oil unit on June 1, the MPA said on its website, allowing the company to

A towing vessel operating in a pushing-ahead configuration experienced a loss of all propulsion while operating on the Mississippi River. The loss of propulsion occurred approximately three hours after getting underway and about 3.5 hours after receiving fuel from a shore-side facility. Fortunately, there was no significant damage to the vessel, nor injuries to crewmembers because of this casualty.The subsequent investigation into the causal factors revealed that the vessel’s fuel tanks and fuel service system to the engine were heavily contaminated by water.

NYK Line, IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd., and ClassNK signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with City of Yokohama for the acceptance of an ammonia-fueled tugboat (A-Tug) at the port of Yokohama.The conclusion of this MoU is part of the Green Innovation Fund project within Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) for the development of vessels equipped with a domestically produced ammonia-fueled engines, adopted in October 2021 for NYK Line and IHI Power Systems Co.…

NYK and Nippon Yuka Kogyo Co., Ltd., an NYK Group company, have jointly developed a new fuel-oil additive effective in dispersing sludge and reducing fuel consumption in VLSFO.NYK and Nippon Yuka Kogyo have been investigating the properties of VLSFO as one of the measures to comply with SOx emission requirements, and in 2019 developed the sludge-dispersing fuel oil additive Yunic 800VLS.The companies observed Yunic 800VLS is effective against most of deteriorated compliant fuel oil…

Chevron Marine Lubricants’ new Taro Ultra Advanced 40 has passed the Main NOL (No Objection Letter) Service and Confirmation field tests by MAN Energy Solutions, which allows the oil’s uninterrupted use in its Mk 9 and later engines.Since the International Maritime organization (IMO) 0.5% sulphur cap came into effect on 1 January 2020, the engine designer has defined two performance standards for lube oils intended for use in their two-stroke engines. To deal with changing fuel variants and engine designs…

Shell Marine received a full No Objection Letter (NOL) from MAN Energy Solutions (MAN ES) for Shell Alexia 40 XC, its Category II (CAT II) 40BN cylinder oil, confirming the successful completion of the full approval process.Alexia 40 XC uses a proprietary and unique formulation, developed by Shell Marine’s in-house Research & Development team. The NOL was received following the conclusion of the Main NOL Service Test and Confirmation Test for Alexia 40XC. The successful approval…