Astomos and INPEX reached an agreement to supply B24 biofuel bunker to a Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Over the next several months, INPEX will supply B24 biofuel to the VLGC through a bunker vessel operated by Monjasa1 at Khor Fakkan port in the UAE emirate of Sharjah. According to Astomos, this will be the first instance in which biofuel is supplied to a VLGC in the Middle East.
B24 biofuel consists of 24 percent fatty acid methyl ester (FAME2 ) and 76 percent very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO), a conventional bunker fuel. Dubai-based Neutral Fuels3 will produce the FAME from waste cooking oil collected from restaurants and hotels in the UAE.
Monjasa will supply the VLSFO and blend it with the FAME. The use of B24 biofuel is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 15~20 percent compared to conventional bunker fuel.
FAME (Fatty acid methyl ester) is produced from vegetable oils, animal fats or waste cooking oils by transesterification, where various oils (triglycerides) are converted to methyl esters. This is the most widely available type of biodiesel in the industry and is often blended with regular marine diesel. International standards: ISO 8217:2017, EN 14214, ASTM D6751, EN 590
To remind, Toyota Tsusho together with Toyotsu Energy launched Japan’s first continuous supply of biodiesel blended fuel on a commercial basis to ships operated by Toyofuji Shipping at the Port of Nagoya in April.
