October 24, 2024 [Argus]- Bunker fuel oil and biomethanol sales at the port of Rotterdam rose in the third quarter of this year, but those of gasoil and marine biodiesel fell, according to official port data.

Very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO), ultra-low sulphur fuel oil (ULSFO), and high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) sales all picked up on the quarter and on the year. Participants attributed the increase in HSFO demand to the seasonal arrival of containerships at the port. HSFO demand rose in the previous quarter owing to re-routing of vessels because of chronic traffic disruption in the Red Sea.

Ahead of the Mediterranean Sea becoming an emission control area (ECA) in May 2025, participants had pointed to expectations of firmer ULSFO demand in Europe for scrubber-less vessels operating between ECA zones. Vessels operating in ECA zones are be required to burn marine fuels with a sulphur content no higher than 0.1pc, rather than the global cap of 0.5pc.

Combined sales for marine gasoil (MGO) and marine diesel oil (MDO) fell on the quarter and on the year in July-September. Market participants reported mostly lacklustre bunker fuel demand in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub in that time, combined with tight prompt availability that weighed further on sales.

Marine biodiesel blend sales declined sharply owing to a shift in voluntary demand east of Suez. B24 dob Singapore, a blend comprising VLSFO and used cooking oil methyl ester (Ucome), was an average of $715.56/t in July–September. This is lower than comparable assessed European blends, such as B30 Ucome dob ARA that averaged $804.71/t, B30 advanced fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) 0 dob ARA — which includes a deduction of the value of Dutch HBE-G renewable fuel tickets — at $738.12/t, and B24 Ucome dob Algeciras-Gibraltar at $784.12/t.

Consequently containerships seeking to deliver proof of sustainability (PoS) documentation to their customers, to offset the latter’s scope 3 emissions, shifted their marine biodiesel demand to Singapore when feasible. PoS can be obtained on a mass-balance system, allowing shipowners flexibility with regards to the port at which a blend can be bunkered.

Biomethanol sales at the port of Rotterdam more than doubled on the quarter and soared by more than eight times on the year.

Several shipping companies are leaning towards methanol and renewable methanol as alternative marine fuels to reduce their emissions. Danish shipping giant Maersk has ordered 24 methanol-powered container ships for delivery and commissioning during 2024-25, and Japanese classification society ClassNK said recently it expects 77 methanol-ready ships to be ordered by 2026, up from 27 newbuilds expected to be ordered this year. ESL Shipping said earlier this month it will build four new vessels that can run on biomethanol and green hydrogen-based e-methanol.

Offtake agreements for renewable methanol are on the rise. Maersk has signed several letters of intent for procurement of biomethanol and e-methanol from producers such as Norway’s state-controlled Equinor, Proman and OCI Global. Maersk has agreed to buy 500,000 t/yr from Danish shipping and logistics company Goldwind from 2024.

Singaporean container shipping group X-Press Feeders said in 2023 it will buy biomethanol from OCI’s Texas plant starting this year.