Maritime Biofuel

Charles Dubouix Last update 23/06/2023

Alternative Fuels : Maritime Biofuels

Key take-aways

Biofuels are maritime fuels produced from biological waste. They reduce CO2 emissions by 84%.

As biofuel is a promising decarbonization pathway, an increasing number of carriers are offering biofuel options.

Biofuels are available on all maritime trades, with no operational constraints thanks to the Book And Claim Scheme.

The biofuel provided by OVRSEA is a second-generation biofuel made from used cooking oils to avoid impacting agricultural lands and forests.

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OVRSEA does not profit from its green offers, and provides them at cost price.

Going Further

Biofuels are made from biological materials hence renewable. They allow for a more sustainable fuel supply compared to finite fossil fuels.

Biofuels can reduce greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels since they are part of a closed carbon cycle. Although burning them still releases CO2, this CO2 was originally absorbed from the atmosphere by the plants during their growth, effectively making it a 'net-zero process.

In contrast, fossil fuels add to the atmospheric CO2 concentration because they release carbon that was stored underground for millions of years.

However, it is important to note that this does not take into account the CO2 emissions from the entire lifecycle of the fuel, including cultivation, harvesting, processing, and transporting the biodiesel. These activities can add to the overall greenhouse gas emissions of biofuels. Therefore, we cannot claim that biofuels emit -100% of CO2e emissions. Considering a life cycle analysis, biofuels allow for an 84% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional maritime fuels.

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OVRSEA biofuel

The biofuel provided by OVRSEA is UCOME (Used Cooking Oil Methyl Esther), a second-generation biofuel made from used cooking oils to avoid impacting agricultural lands and forests.

The difference between 1st generation and 2nd generation biofuels :

First-generation biofuels come from food crops and may influence food security due to competing land use.
Second-generation biofuels, derived from non-food crops or waste, lessen the impact on food security and land use, but require advanced production technology.

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Land use concerns … … arise from converting forests or agricultural land designated for food crops to biofuel crop cultivation, risking biodiversity and food security. Second-generation biofuels, derived from non-food crops or waste, present a solution as they reduce these impacts, being less dependent on arable land.

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The “next generation” of biofuels : Synthetic fuels Synthetic fuels, also known as power-to-liquid (PtL) fuels, are produced by capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and combining it with hydrogen (H2) derived from water (H2O). They are a type of e-fuel. The process by which synthetic fuels are produced is a part of a broader field called carbon capture and utilization (CCU). The idea is to use captured CO2 and renewable energy to create carbon-neutral fuels. Currently, the main limitation is the cost of production. They are more expensive to produce than 2nd generation biofuels. In the long term, the availability of low-carbon electricity can limit scaling efforts.

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More details

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