Read all the latest news about 2020 sulfur regulations. ShippingWatch gives you independent, credible, critical and fair news.
The price spread between low-sulfur fuel and heavy bunker is normalizing, while previous shortages of the fuel at major bunker ports seem to be under control, writes Sea-Intelligence.
Only few peers opt for LNG as either a transitional fuel or a fuel for the next decades. A major shipper like Ikea does not count liquefied natural gas as a fuel for the future. Still, CMA CGM maintains LNG at the core of its bunker policy. ShippingWatch has interviewed the container line.
Shipping company Norden has made adjustments to its fleet. Two tankers have been bought, and one has been sold. The company maintains that it will continue to be active within the buying and selling of ships.
The world's biggest bunker company, World Fuel Services, expects the new sulfur restrictions to demand more of the bunker industry's balance sheets. This will show who is "able to go the distance from a financial perspective," says the CEO in an interview with ShippingWatch.
Scrubber manufacturers Clean Marine and FMSI, partly owned by Frontline, will merge just a few months before the new global sulfur cap comes into force. With this merger, the parties say they can increase production and shorten delivery times.
J. Lauritzen's maritime officers will not only be prepped to handle new fuel types leading up to 2020. Financial considerations and potential losses from technical failures were also on the agenda, when three of the shipping company's executives met with crew members in the Phillippines.
Indonesia has decided to not exempt its ships from the upcoming sulfur requirements, the country's transport ministry says. Environmental alliance still fears resistance from countries, however, and appeals to banks and investors.
Extra expenses for low-sulfur fuel are small enough compared to factors such as US tariffs on Chinese goods that they will not lead to a similar container boom ahead of the new sulfur regulations, notes analyst firm Sea-Intelligence.
Fuel with more than 0.5 percent sulfur will continue to be sold by three out of four bunker suppliers in Singapore after the new sulfur regulations come into force next year.
Oil company Total believes the market for high-sulfur fuel oil will continue to be "significant" once the sulfur regulations enter force next year.
The coming 2020 requirements may break container carriers and trigger a new wave of acquisitions or mergers, according to maritime and supply chain consultancy firm Drewry.
The US should support the sulfur regulations and implement them in a timely manner, says the powerful US oil lobby in a letter to the White House, thus increasing its pressure on President Donald Trump.
Since Goodfuels signed up shipping company Norden as a biofuels customer, the pace has quickened for the company. Large oceangoing carriers are next in line, says founder and CEO in an interview with ShippingWatch.
New requirements for bunker suppliers came into force at the turn of the year. With one year left before the global sulfur cap goes into effect, bunker companies are now obliged to ensure that their fuel is compliant.
A university and an institute are conducting a project testing the environmentally sound fuel methanol in Singapore. According to the partners, this is the first trial of its kind in Asia.
Uncertainty regarding the future price of low-sulfur fuel, compliant with the IMO's 2020 directive, continues to be major. New figures indicate a limited premium price, significantly smaller than many expected.
Towards 2021, IMO's safety committee will develop new guidelines to control the safety of the new fuels that will be introduced before the 2020 global sulfur regulations. Proposals must be submitted prior to the next meeting.
Chaos could erupt in ports in the first months of 2020, as shipowners are not prepared to operate under the new global sulfur regulations, says Martin Stopford, president, Clarksons Research.
Scorpio is now putting a figure on the number of vessels in its fleet to be equipped with scrubbers – and how many additional units are held on option.
Contract prices on low sulfur fuel will become a commodity on the US New York Mercantile Exchange from mid-December, report several media. The price difference between heavy fuel and low sulfur fuel is a major subject of in the industry.
The German liner shipping giant will approach the upcoming global sulfur regulations from three sides. One choice is by far the most long-term.
Difficulties involved with blending two types of fuel are a factor at present, and will remain so after 2020. Whether or not the problems will become larger or smaller remains uncertain, Bureau Veritas tells Platts.
Shipping association Bimco has adopted two new bunker clauses aimed at the global sulfur regulations and at determining which party is responsible for ensuring compliance with marine fuel regulations.
If the major liner companies have ordered their last scrubber, the exhaust-filtering system was far from the industry's preferred solution. A very small portion of Maersk Line's fleet will be equipped with the system, while others appear to have completely avoided the technology.
The world's leading petroleum producers are not interested in oil prices becoming too high, says oil trader Gunvor, which expects that scrubbers will ensure continued high demand for high-sulfur fuel oil.
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