First trial of HSFO biofuel takes place in South Korea

The M/V Torrens, a vehicle carrier under the management of Norwegian shipping and logistics company Wallenius Wilhelmsen, has achieved a significant milestone by becoming the first vessel to bunker B30 high-sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) biofuel during its visit to Masan Port, South Korea. This initiative was undertaken in partnership with GS Caltex Corporation, a South Korean energy and chemical company.

To clarify, B30 HSFO biofuel is a drop-in fuel that can be seamlessly utilized in existing engines without the need for any modifications or tank cleaning. It consists of HSFO blended with UCOME, a bio feedstock. It’s important to note that the availability of this specific biofuel worldwide is currently quite limited, and the situation is exacerbated by the overall low demand for marine biofuel blending in South Korea.

Wallenius Wilhelmsen has explained that the supply of B30 HSFO biofuel in Korea will remain constrained until the relevant authorities finalize rules and regulations concerning biofuels in the region.

In line with its global deep-sea trade decarbonization strategy, Wallenius Wilhelmsen is actively evaluating the feasibility of both HSFO-biofuel blends and very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) biofuel blends in the Asia region.

Furthermore, Wallenius Wilhelmsen is responding to its customers’ growing interest in reducing their Scope 3 carbon dioxide emissions by introducing a new service known as the Reduced Carbon Freight Service. This service will involve providing customers with declarations, verified by a third-party accreditor, confirming the reduced CO2 emissions achieved through the use of biofuel.

Customers adopting the Reduced Carbon Freight Service can typically anticipate a reduction in their Scope 3 CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions in their supply chains, with B30 biofuel offering an approximately 20-25% reduction compared to VLSFO/HSFO over the entire fuel lifecycle.

Cha Hyungmin, who is leading the GS Caltex Biofuel team, said on the development, “GS Caltex has paved the way for developing Bio-Marine Fuels in Korea, and we expect this B30 Bio-Marine Fuel (HSFO) trial with Wallenius Wilhelmsen will be a meaningful step for scrubber installed vessels of global shipping companies to reduce their carbon emissions when calling Korean ports. We hope to expand the relationship with Wallenius Wilhelmsen and support as a carbon reduction solution partner in Korea.”