Biofuels may have an important role to play in shipping’s decarbonisation, but feedstock availability and demand competition from other transport sectors pose challenges that will need to be addressed for widespread adoption, according to a new report from Lloyd’s Register’s (LR).
The report points to biofuels as a path to compliance with environmental regulations for ships for which retrofits to adopt other future fuels are not economically feasible.
As ‘drop-in’ replacements for traditional fuels, biofuels require minimal changes to machinery and operations and offer GHG emissions savings of up to 84% compared to traditional fuels.
“Drop-in replacements for fossil fuels may be a cost-effective way of meeting environmental regulations and could extend the life of older vessels, if barriers to adoption can be overcome” says the LR report.
However, the report states that the main challenges for widespread deployment are availability and demand competition from other transport sectors, including aviation, and the investment in biofuel production capacity that will be needed to meet the growing demand from the transport sector.
The price of biodiesel blends is expected to rise alongside blending levels as feedstock prices are driven higher by demand, LR says.
As reported by LR, the similarities between biofuels and their fossil equivalents, as well as the ability to blend biofuels with traditional fuels, makes adopting biofuels a comparatively straightforward process for shipowners compared to other alternative fuels.
Biofuels are generally compatible with existing onboard machinery and fuel tanks, use the same bunkering infrastructure as fossil equivalents, and their similarity to traditional bunkers means training requirements for crew are minimal compared to other future fuels.
The most established products suitable for shipping are Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) and Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), and novel fuels continue to be developed.
“Ship operators need to be alert to the individual characteristics of any given biofuel,” notes the LR.
Tim Wilson, principal specialist fuels lubes and emissions, Lloyd’s Register, said: “Biofuels are unique among the future fuels for shipping as the vast majority of the world fleet is equipped with engines that can use them.
“As a drop-in replacement for fossil fuels, biofuels are an available and affordable method of reducing carbon emissions in the short term without large capital investment. The range of biofuel trials across ship segments and biofuel types reflect a strong level of interest from shipowners in their use onboard.”
