Hapag-Lloyd inks biofuel supply deal with ExxonMobil

Oil and gas major ExxonMobil has signed an agreement to supply German liner major Hapag-Lloyd with B30 marine biofuel oil in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) region.

Biofuel is an important part of Hapag-Lloyd’s sustainability journey as biofuel blends can give a meaningful contribution to decarbonization as a drop in fuel. The ‘drop in’ quality of the solution means that little or no modifications are needed to the existing vessel’s infrastructure to switch to biofuel.

In 2022, the company used more than 120,000 tons of biofuel on more or less all of its ships.

Hapag-Lloyd plans to double down on biofuel use this year and the liner heavyweight has already launched its ‘ship green’ product for customers that want to cut their emissions from shipping by enabling them to transport their cargo on biofuel blends.

The product was rolled out earlier this month and it offers three different options, representing different levels of CO2e emission reduction for the ocean leg of the shipment: 100%, 50% or 25%.

“This agreement and delivery marks an important development for both ExxonMobil and our customers,” said Aly Abdelmotaal, Regional Marine Marketing Manager, ExxonMobil.

“By boosting our biofuel offer we can now further support the marine industry’s commitment to reducing GHG emissions, in line with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) stated ambitions. These bunker deliveries follow similar agreements in Singapore in 2022.”

The marine biofuel delivery in ARA was a 0.50% sulphur residual-based fuel (VLSFO) processed with waste-based fatty acid methyl esters (FAME). The resulting blend met ISO 8217:2017, while the FAME content complied with EN 14214.

The FAME components were ISCC-certified 2nd generation, meaning that they do not compete for water and agricultural resources used for food production, ExxonMobnil said.

As disclosed, the fuel can deliver a CO2 reduction of up to 87% for the bio-component.

“We aim to have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions for our entire fleet by 2045 by using alternative fuels,” said Jan Christensen, Senior Director, Global Fuel Purchasing, at Hapag-Lloyd.

“Bunkering ExxonMobil’s marine biofuel oil blend is yet another step towards turning our commitment into a reality.”

Biofuels are an easy fuel in the sense of handling and implementation as they can be used on the existing infrastructure.

While biofuels offer the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve the sustainability of the shipping industry, their widespread adoption faces several challenges, including the availability of sufficient feedstocks, scalability, and cost-effectiveness