IMO 2020-compliant bunker fuel for Maersk
A big carrier has taken another step in its preparation for the sulphur cap looming in 2020: Maersk Oil Trading and Koole Terminals have agreed on the production of IMO 2020-compliant bunker fuel. The production will take place at the petrochemical industrial distillation (PID) unit, located at Koole’s Botlek site in the port of Rotterdam (the Netherlands).
The toll distillation deal allows Maersk to produce VLSFO bunker fuel and the annual production is expected to cover 5-10% of the carrier’s annual fuel demand. “The fuel manufacturing process allows Maersk to produce compatible low sulphur fuels that comply with the IMO 2020 sulphur cap implementation, reducing the need to rely on 0.1% price-based gasoil and fuel oil outside the ECA zones,” said Niels Henrik Lindegaard, head of Maersk Oil Trading at A.P. Moller - Maersk.
The IMO 2020 0.5% sulphur fuel cap will be implemented globally as of 1 January 2020. Bunker fuels within the ECA (emission control area) zones will remain at the current cap of 0.1% sulphur. Koole's PID unit will also give Maersk the option to produce such ECA 0.1% sulphur fuel. (fd)