Ship Power: MAN Energy Solutions Unveils New LNG Dual-fuel Engine
In a live-stream presentation from its Copenhagen Research Center, MAN Energy Solutions has demonstrated advanced dual-fuel engine technology for low-cost, fuel-efficient operation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and other vessels where low capital outlay is a priority. Tom Mulligan, science &and technology correspondent, reports.MAN Energy Solutions has demonstrated its latest low-speed, dual-fuel engine, the MAN B&W ME-GA type, an Otto-cycle variant of the company’s successful ME-GI engine, at a ceremony live-streamed from its Copenhagen Research Center.
Venezuelan Oil Exports Rise on Larger Sales to Asia
Venezuela’s oil exports rose in February to over 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), their highest level in 10 months, pushed by more sales of fuel oil cargoes to new clients in Asian markets, according to Refinitiv Eikon’s tanker tracking data and documents.A growing number of clients with no track record in oil trading has been helping Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA to allocate crude and fuel in Asia, especially since the U.S. Treasury Department halted oil swaps by PDVSA’s long-term customers in the last quarter of 2020 as part of tightening sanctions.These buyers…
VLSFO Plus Older Engines Can Presents New Maintenance Challenges
As shipowners mull the pros and cons associated with new fuels to meet tightening emissions rules, Chevron Marine is finding that some ship owners that switched older engines to very low-sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) are reporting build-up of red deposits on piston crowns and top edges, sometimes combined with red iron burrs in scavenge ports. The deposits are associated with abnormal liner wear since the fuel switch, particularly on older two-stroke marine engines.“While newer ships do not have a problem using these fuels, engines already closer to an overhaul did struggle sometimes.
China's INE Considers Singapore for Marine Fuel Futures Delivery
The Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE) is considering using oil storage sites in Singapore owned by PetroChina Co as a delivery point for its low-sulphur fuel oil futures contract, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.The INE’s move would be the first time a Chinese futures contract would be deliverable outside of China and could boost liquidity for the contract, as well as help to influence pricing for shipping fuel.Low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) is required as ship fuel to meet new maritime emissions regulations that went into effect this year.
Exxon Committed to Singapore Refinery Expansion
Exxon Mobil Corp said on Thursday it remained committed to expanding its refining-petrochemical complex in Singapore amid an ongoing review of its projects globally.Along with other oil producers, Exxon has been slashing costs due to a collapse in oil demand and ill-timed bets on new projects. The top U.S. oil company earlier outlined more than $10 billion in budget cuts this year.Exxon made a final investment decision in 2019 on the multi-billion dollar expansion of its integrated manufacturing complex in Singapore…
World First LPG-Retrofit BW Gemini Heads for Sea Trials
BW LPG’s low-speed main-engine converted to dual-fuel runningReportedly the first successful conversion of the main engine aboard the LPG carrier – from an MAN B&W 6G60ME-C9.2 type to an MAN B&W 6G60ME- LGIP dual-fuel type capable of operating on fuel oil and LPG – has been carried out on BW Gemini, which is part of the fleet of Oslo-listed BW LPG – the world's leading owner and operator of LPG vessels.The conversion and start of gas and sea trials will make the BW Gemini the world’s first commercial vessel to be propelled by a two-stroke LPG dual-fuel engine.
Virtual TAT: MAN 32/40R-DF Passes Type Approval Test, New Retrofit Package for Dual-Fuel Ops
MAN Energy Solutions announced the successful conclusion of the Type Approval Test (TAT) for its dual-fuel retrofit kit for its MAN 32/40 engine type. The TAT took place at the company’s Augsburg, Germany works from September 15-18, 2020 with the participation of the three classification societies: DNV GL, American Bureau of Shipping, and Lloyd’s Register.The TAT confirmed the suitability of the retrofit kit for converting the company’s field-proven MAN 32/40 engine into a dual-fuel unit – a so-called MAN 32/40R-DF type – that can now run on fossil and renewable…
Taiwan: Fire Hits Formosa's Mailiao Refinery
Taiwan's Formosa Petrochemical Corp has shut a residue desulfurizer (RDS) unit at its 540,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) Mailiao refinery after it was hit by a fire early on Wednesday, three sources close to the matter said.Mailiao is one of Asia's 10 largest standalone refining plants. The sources said its no. 2 RDS, with a capacity of 80,000 bpd, had been affected by the fire.Formosa spokesmen could not immediately be reached for comment.Trade sources said the outage would hit output of low-sulphur residual fuels used either in blending…
China Grants Zheijang First Private Fuel Export License
China has granted Zhejiang Petroleum & Chemical Co (ZPC) a license to export refined oil products, making it the first private oil refiner to win such permission, two sources with knowledge of the matter said on Thursday.The license would allow ZPC to directly sell oil products to the international market, competing against state-owned refiners and helping to ease oversupply pressure in China's domestic market.However, the refiner will still need to be granted a government quota that will determine the size of its exports before it can begin shipments…
China's Sinopec Starts Hiring for New Risk Management Unit
China Petrochemical Corp, or Sinopec Group, has started hiring for six top management positions for a new commodities risk management unit, according to a statement posted on the state energy company's official wechat account on Sunday.Formally known as Sinopec Chaoyang Risk Management Co and with a registered capital of 300 million yuan ($42.40 million), the new firm will provide financial services for the oil and chemical sector including hedging and inventory management…
Woodside to Boost Vincent Crude Quality to Ride VLSFO Demand
Woodside Petroleum will improve the quality of Vincent crude by increasing its flash point from July so that it can be blended into very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) and capture higher premiums, two sources told Reuters.Among crude grades, heavy sweet oil, with higher density and less sulfur, is most suitable for blending into VLSFO that meets the new marine fuel sulfur regulations dubbed IMO 2020. However, crude with a low flash point could ignite easily and can cause engine…
China Issues Second Batch Fuel Export Quotas
China has issued 28 million tonnes of refined fuel export quotas in the second allotment for this year, little changed from the first batch of 27.99 million tonnes issued last December, according to four sources with knowledge of the matter.The quotas were released last week to five state oil companies, PetroChina, Sinopec, China National Offshore Oil Corp, Sinochem Group and China National Aviation Fuel Corp, the sources said.The new quotas, of mostly gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel…
BIMCO: 2020 and the Collapse of Bunker Fuel Markets
The sulfur regulation from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that came into force on 1 January 2020 took the center stage in the shipping industry at outset of the new decade. Four months on, the spotlights have turned to the coronavirus and the OPEC+ oil price war.The outlook for global economic growth remains bleak as the world is faced with the largest recession since the Great Depression in the 1930s.Commodity prices have declined across the board and most recently…
Oil Traders Chase Storage Space in World Awash with Fuel
Oil traders are struggling to find enough ships, railcars, caverns and pipelines to store fuel as more conventional storage facilities fill up amid abundant supply and plummeting demand due to the coronavirus crisis.Dozens of oil tanker vessels have been booked in recent days to store at least 30 million barrels of jet fuel, gasoline and diesel at sea, acting as floating storage, as on-land tanks are full or already booked, according to traders and shipping data.That adds to about 130 million barrels of crude already in floating storage…
Coronavirus Spurs Oil Majors to Cancel IP Week Events
The list of parties at London's International Petroleum Week, one of the world's biggest oil industry gatherings, continues to shrink as hosts such as ExxonMobil and Azerbaijan's SOCAR cancel events due to the coronavirus, trading sources said. IP Week is a key oil traders' gathering that takes place every year in February. This year, it is scheduled for Feb. 24-27. Oil majors, national oil companies and trading firms host receptions for networking throughout the week. Spooked by the epidemic, several oil companies based in Asia said last week they would skip IP Week this year.
Hapag-Lloyd Trials Biofuel
German shipping major Hapag-Lloyd announced that one of its ships recently refueled in Rotterdam with an eco-friendly biofuel, as part of its plan to reduce CO2 emissions."For the first time, the “Montreal Express” is being powered by so-called “B20” fuel, which consists of 80 percent low-sulfur fuel oil and 20 percent bio-diesel based on cooking oils and fats that had previously been used in the food service/catering industry," said a press note from the container transportation company.The biodiesel generates up to 90 percent less CO2 emissions than conventional fuels…
LNG and Shipping Decarbonisation Target
Though liquefied natural gas (LNG) could help the shipping industry to reach its decarbonization target, it could wreck the climate, finds a study.According to a research by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), switching vessels to the LNG fuel would only serve to worsen shipping’s climate impact due to previously underestimated leakage of the climate super-pollutant methane.More and more ships, including container ships and cruise ships, are being built to run on liquefied natural gas (LNG)…
US Refiners Grab HSFO on Back of IMO 2020
U.S. refiners are scooping up cheap high-sulfur fuel oil for processing from Russia and the Baltic states as they take advantage of new shipping rules that have cut demand for the dirtier marine fuel, according to oil traders and shipping data.U.S. refiners Valero Corp, Chevron Corp and Phillips 66 have been buying HSFO, traders said, taking advantage of their complex operations to turn HSFO blended with crude oils into products like diesel, gasoil and gasoline.This month…
Venezuela Alters Oil Royalty Formulas, Driven by IMO 2020
Venezuela has changed the formulas for calculating royalties energy companies pay the government to remove references to fuel oil and some crude grades, driven by stricter rules governing marine fuel emissions, according to a document seen by Reuters.A ban by the United Nations shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), on the use of fuels with a sulfur content above 0.5%, aimed at reducing pollution, has roiled oil markets and caused price volatility…
Malaysia Spot Crude Premiums Hit Multi-year High
Asia-Pacific refineries are forking out multi-year high premiums for sweet crude produced in the region as alternative supplies from the West have become more expensive with the rise in shipping costs, several trade sources said on Monday.Lower exports from Indonesia and Vietnam and rising demand for very low-sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) have also helped push up premiums for crude produced in Malaysia such as Labuan and Kimanis to the highest in years, they said.Malaysian crude…
