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ONE completes trial use of biofuel in decarbonisation move

Photo: ONE ONE.jpg
Ocean Network Express (ONE) has successfully conducted the trial use of biofuel to power a 4,803-teu container vessel in a decarbonisation move for shipping.

The containership MOL Experience completed the trial on 7 February following bunkering at the port of Rotterdam in November 2020, performed in collaboration with shipowner Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) and biofuel supplier GoodFuels.

During the trial, the sustainable biofuel was blended with conventional fossil fuels enabling the MOL Experience to make its Atlantic crossings between Europe and the US. The success of the trial proves the viability of biofuels to help ONE meet its carbon reduction targets in 2030 and 2050 respectively.

ONE aims to use biofuels to reduce CO2 emissions by 25% from its 2018 baseline by 2030, and by 50% by 2050.

“MOL Group Environmental Vision 2.0 declares that we shall achieve sustainable net zero GHG emissions by the entire MOL Group. The success of this trial led to the verification of the availability of various leading alternative marine fuels and it is in line with the MOL Group’s stance of continuously monitoring technological development trends,” said Michihiko Nakano, general manager of MOL, one of the three shareholders of ONE.

GoodFuels’ sustainable biofuels are virtually free of sulphur oxides and deliver 80-90% well-to-exhaust CO2 reduction versus fossil fuel equivalents. They are functionally equivalent to petroleum-derived marine fuels and no modification is required to the engine or the fuel infrastructure.

Isabel Welten, chief commercial officer of GoodFuels, commented: “This partnership with ONE continues to build momentum behind a cleaner shipping sector, and shows what can be achieved when organisations collaborate to accelerate the adoption of alternative fuel solutions.