The dual-fuel tanker Fure Valö performed the first voyage on a new Equinor fuel blend containing used cooking oil. It reduces greenhouse gas emissions while, judging from the first test indications, maintaining the same performance as conventional marine gasoil.
Fure Valö has made a roundtrip from Mongstad in Norway to Reykjavik, Iceland on Equinor’s blend of 30% renewable fuel and 70% marine gasoil from the Mongstad refinery.
The initial results were positive, as no adverse effects on performance or consumption were detected compared to conventional marine gasoil.
The renewable fuel component in the blend is biodiesel made from used cooking oil. It brings a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of at least 87.5% versus its fossil fuel equivalent. Equinor has chosen to perform the test in close cooperation with Furetank.
The initial results demonstrate that renewable liquid fuels, blended in combination with refined products, can contribute to considerable emission reductions within commercial shipping.
Even if we primarily run our dual-fuel vessels on LNG/LBG or gasoil today, they are designed to be flexible, future-proof and easily converted to run on any fuel that will prove to be the right choice for the future
said Furetank CEO Lars Höglund.
All vessels in the Furetank Vinga series have dual-fuel capacity. They are equipped with insulated stainless steel fuel tanks on deck, designed to contain pressurized, liquefied gas. These tanks could also store for example ammonia or hydrogen.
Testing of the new fuel on Fure Valö will continue during five to six roundtrips between Mongstad and Iceland to prove performance in the harsh weather-exposed trade on the North Atlantic, as well as and handling over time.
