Alternative Fuels

SMW 2021: MPA, BW Group, Sembmarine, EPS, ONE, DNV, BHP decarbonisation efforts recognised

‘Let’s think of how we can achieve this goal together; “and” not “all”; “multiply” not “divide” and “integrate” not “differentiate”’, states Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Transport.

Published

5 years ago

April 22, 2021

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Efforts by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), BW Group, Sembcorp Marine, Eastern Pacific Shipping, Ocean Network Express, Foundation Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and BHP to establish a fund for a maritime decarbonisation centre to be set up in Singapore has been recognised by the local government.

Chee Hong Tat, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Transport, shared a speech with delegates prior to witnessing the signing of memorandum of cooperation (MoC) agreements between the parties on Wednesday (21 April) morning.

“I’m heartened by the participation of six industry players, BW Group, Sembcorp Marine, Eastern Pacific shipping, Ocean Network Express Foundation, DNV, and BHP coming on board to sign the MoC together,” he said.

“I think this is a good start and I hope more partners can come on board in due time.”

Under the MoC, each private sector partner will contribute SGD 10 million (USD 7.5 million) to support the establishment of the centre, fund maritime-decarbonisation-related research and technology development projects and collaborate with institutes of higher learning and research institutes.

MPA will add SGD 60 million R&D funding to these contributions, bringing the fund to a total of SGD 120 million.

In his speech, SMS Chee introduced three concepts mirroring the republic’s ideology towards the development of green marine fuels and decarbonisation through the maritime decarbonisation centre.

First Concept of ‘And’ versus ‘All’

“The first is the concept of ‘and’ versus ‘all’. This is important because sometimes we end up asking ourselves if we should choose A or B or C; for example, LNG, or ammonia, or hydrogen,” SMS Chee told delegates.

“Maybe the answer is not ‘all’; maybe the answer is ‘and’. So this concept of ‘and’ versus ‘all’ is something useful for us to bear in mind because I don’t believe that we have one single silver bullet that can solve the entire decarbonisation challenge for the industry.”

He shared the Singapore maritime industry will need to be open to consider a range of decarbonisation solutions suiting different timelines and technical considerations.

“And maybe, the final outcome is a combination or all the above,” he stated.

“Likewise, I don’t think fuel is the only thing that we should pay attention to. Fuel is one very important area, but it is just one of the areas.

“We also have to look at other aspects of how to reduce carbon emissions in the maritime industry. So that’s the first concept of ‘and’ rather than ‘or’.”

Second Concept of ‘Multiply’ not ‘Divide’

SMS Chee further believed the concept of ‘multiply’ versus ‘divide’ to be important.

“A lot of these efforts that we’re going to have to put in to achieve the goals will require long term and significant investments. Governments, or companies, workers, and everyone has to chip in,” he continued.

“So rather than divide our efforts with each one doing our own research silos independently and not working together, we can achieve this very challenging goal if we work together; and we are able to then multiply our efforts. So that’s the second point, ‘multiply’ not ‘divide’.”

Third Concept of ‘Integrate’ not ‘Differentiate’

Lastly, SMS Chee highlighted the maritime decarbonisation centre will be able to integrate the R&D efforts from multiple parties for optimal results.

“There are many different technologies and solutions and if we end up developing them separately they’re not able to be integrated to talk to one another […] we are not going to be able to achieve the optimal,” he states.

“So, what we want is to bring together partners from different parts of the value chain, research institutions, companies, governments, port authorities so that we are able to not just develop and test bed solutions, we are also able to put them into real life applications and see how they work under real life conditions whether they produce results.”

SMS Chee notes the MPA is also looking at research in carbon pricing mechanisms, carbon accounting, and green financing as part of recommendations by the International Advisory Panel on Maritime Decarbonisation.

“So to sum up, let’s think of how we can achieve this goal together; ‘and’ not ‘all’; ‘multiply’ not ‘divide’ and ‘integrate’ not ‘differentiate’. I wish the centre a great success.”

The Singapore Maritime Week (SMW) 2021 is taking place between 19-23 April 2021; further articles written by media partner Manifold Times as part of SMW 2021 are as follows:

Photo credit: Manifold Times
Published: 22 April, 2021

Newbuilding

Yang Ming names third 15,500 TEU LNG dual-fuel boxship in South Korea

Company held a naming ceremony at HD HHI shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, for “YM Wayfinder”, the third vessel in its series of LNG dual-fuel container vessels built by HD HHI.

Published

11 hours ago

June 29, 2026

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Yang Ming names third 15,500 TEU LNG dual-fuel boxship in South Korea

Taiwanese shipping firm Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation (Yang Ming) on Friday (26 June) said it held a naming ceremony at the HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, for YM Wayfinder.

It is the third vessel in its series of 15,500 TEU-class LNG dual-fuel container vessels built by HD HHI.

Mrs. Wei-Nung Kao, the spouse of Yang Ming’s Chairman, Mr. Feng-Ming Tsai, was invited as the Godmother to officially name the vessel and perform the ceremonial cord-cutting.

As additional LNG dual-fuel vessels join the fleet, Yang Ming will enhance operational efficiency, strengthen service competitiveness, and further reduce fleet carbon intensity to provide customers with low-carbon transportation services.

This series of vessels built by HD HHI has a length overall (LOA) of 364.97 metres, a breadth of 51 metres, and a capacity of approximately 15,600 TEU.

In alignment with the global net-zero emissions target by 2050, Yang Ming has been actively expanding its energy-efficient fleet and is the first container shipping company in Taiwan to operate vessels utilising LNG as an alternative fuel.

Equipped with high-pressure dual-fuel main engines that run on both LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil, this series of vessels primarily utilises LNG as fuel upon delivery, which immediately reduces greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 20% compared to conventional fuel oil.

Two sister vessels in the LNG dual-fuel series, YM Willpower and YM Worthiness, are already in service and primarily operate on LNG. To date, the two vessels have bunkered more than 11,158 metric tonnes (mt) of LNG, which is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 12,532 mt.

YM Wayfinder is scheduled to commence service on the Asia-North Europe FE3 service on 1 July.

The vessel’s deployment will enable Yang Ming to maximise slot utilization and enhance the competitiveness of its service network while fulfilling the company’s commitment to providing comprehensive, efficient, and energy-saving transportation services for customers.

The comprehensive port rotation for the FE3 service is: Qingdao – Ningbo – Yantian – Singapore – Felixstowe – Antwerp – Hamburg.

Photo credit: Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation
Published: 29 June, 2026

Ammonia

Pilbara Ports confirms plans for first ammonia bunkering trial in late 2026

This comes following Fortescue and CMB.TECH announcing their landmark agreement to introduce dual-fuelled ammonia bulk-carriers to the Pilbara.

Published

11 hours ago

June 29, 2026

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Pilbara Ports confirms plans for first ammonia bunkering trial in late 2026

Australia’s Pilbara Ports Authority on Friday (26 June) confirmed progress of its plans for the first ammonia bunkering trial at the Port of Port Hedland later this year.

On its website, the port authority said ammonia-fuelled vessels are expected to begin visiting Pilbara as early as this year.

This comes following Fortescue and CMB.TECH announcing their landmark agreement to introduce dual-fuelled ammonia bulk-carriers to the Pilbara, a significant milestone in accelerating the transition to low-carbon shipping.

The port authority said the announcement reflects the growing global momentum behind ammonia as a marine fuel and the collective effort across industry to decarbonise supply chains.

On 22 June, Fortescue said it signed an agreement with CMB.TECH for the charter of up to 12 ammonia-capable vessels.

Under the agreement, Fortescue will charter a fleet of 12 Newcastlemax dry bulk vessels (210,000 dwt) from Bocimar, CMB.TECH’s dry bulk shipping operator.

Up to three of the vessels will be delivered with dual-fuel ammonia engines and are expected to enter service by the end of 2026. The remaining nine vessels will be ammonia-ready and can be converted to operate on ammonia in the future.

“At Pilbara Ports, we’re proud to be supporting this transition, with plans progressing for our first ammonia refuelling trial at the Port of Port Hedland later this year,” the port authority said.

“This work will help ensure the Pilbara is ready – with the infrastructure, safety frameworks and operational capability needed to support the next generation of cleaner vessels.”

Photo credit: Pilbara Ports AuthorityPublished: 29 June, 2026

Alternative Fuels

Evos Rotterdam starts construction on methanol and ethanol expansion project

Once operational in early 2028, the expansion will give Evos Rotterdam greater capacity to handle methanol and ethanol for industrial customers, as well as for low-carbon marine fuels and bunkering.

Published

11 hours ago

June 29, 2026

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Evos Rotterdam starts construction on methanol and ethanol expansion project

Evos Rotterdam on Thursday (25 June) said it has held the ground-breaking ceremony for its methanol and ethanol expansion project at the Port of Rotterdam, formally starting the construction phase of a major investment in additional terminal capacity.

The project comprises five new storage tanks with a combined gross capacity of 67,500 cubic metres, a new pump station and a new jetty, developed in close cooperation with the Port of Rotterdam.

Once operational in early 2028, the expansion will give Evos Rotterdam greater capacity to handle methanol and ethanol for industrial customers, as well as for the developing market in cleaner, low-carbon marine fuels and bunkering.

Daan Vos, CEO of Evos, said: “This ground-breaking ceremony is the starting point for the construction phase of a project that has required close cooperation, technical focus and long-term commitment.

“I would like to thank the Port of Rotterdam, our contractors and all project partners who joined us and who have helped bring the project to this stage.

“This expansion strengthens Rotterdam’s position in methanol and ethanol logistics, including low-carbon methanol, and gives our customers the capacity they need as markets continue to change.”

Christiaan Kop, Managing Director Evos Rotterdam, said: “Thank you to everyone who joined us to officially start this project. It was a strong beginning for an excellent project.

“I would also like to thank the project team for helping to organise the ceremony so well. The team has shown the professionalism and confidence this project deserves.”

Photo credit: Evos Rotterdam
Published: 29 June, 2026