A new bunker barge designed to tap into Asia’s burgeoning biofuel market.
B24, B30, B100 Biofuels blends
7,990 DWT
102 Length (M)
The Marine Future is a new type of vessel for Vitol Bunkers, and one that is transformative for the Asian biofuel bunker market.
Built in China, the Marine Future is an IMO Type 2 bunker vessel, capable of supplying biofuels blends including B24, B30 up to B100, depending on customer specifications. It is 102 metres in length and has the capacity to carry about 7,000 MT of biofuels. V-Bunkers took delivery of the barge in early February.
Currently, all vessels delivering bunker fuel in Singapore are oil tankers. These are permitted to only supply a fuel blended with biofuel up to 25% concentration. Any greater and IMO regulations stipulate a ‘IMO Type 2 chemical tanker’ ship is required.
“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. Should there be demand, this vessel can also be re-configured in future to supply methanol”
Though at a nascent stage, demand for biofuel is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, as the shipping industry looks at ways to decarbonise and curb emissions. Volumes of biofuels sales reached around 520,000 tonnes in 2023, according to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), compared to 140,000 tonnes in 2022.
V-Bunkers has delivered over 7 million tons of bunker fuels in 2023 for its customers, which is also a record year for Singapore. Its barges delivered around 190,000 tons of biofuels, which is nearly 36% of total biofuels volume delivered in Singapore last year.
Shipping is considered a hard-to-abate industry, with no single technology or solution to solve emissions. Biofuels such as methane, methanol or fuel oil / gas oil blends, stand out as a practical pathway for shipping companies to curb carbon emissions, due to their ability as a ‘drop in fuel’.
Depending on demand, these vessels could also be upgraded to supply methanol.
The Marine Future is the first of several similar biofuel bunker barges that Vitol will be taking delivery throughout 2024.
