B24 bunker blend debuts in UAE's Khor Fakkan

Dubai-based trading firm Axiom Global Oil and Gas Trading conducted the first delivery of biofuel bunker blend in the port of Khor Fakkan, UAE, on 9 January.

The operation involved the delivery of 200t of B24 blend to bulk carrier MV GCL Narmada by Axiom's supply partner SPR Global. B24 is typically produced by a blend of 24pc fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) and the remaining part consisting of 0.5pc very low-sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO).

"VLSFO was meticulously blended with certified biofuel obtained from local sources," Axiom said.

The first delivery of B24 bunker fuel in the neighbouring port of Fujairah, the Middle East's largest bunkering hub, took place in early December. Since then two more deliveries have taken place there.

Fujairah is the world's fourth largest bunkering centre, but has been lagging Singapore and European bunkering hubs in the transition to alternative marine fuels.

The maritime industry has been looking at B24 blends as one of the main ways to meet the International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) decarbonisation targets that were agreed in 2023. Use of B24 biofuel could reduce CO2 emissions by 15-20pc compared with conventional bunker fuel, to comply with Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) targets and ratings set by the IMO from 2024. This requires all ships to calculate their Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) to improve energy efficiency.

By Elshan Aliyev