By Capt. Vikas Pandey, Founder & CEO, Shipfinex

The numbers on alternative-fuel orders look encouraging. Seventy-two percent of newbuild capacity ordered in the first ten months of 2025 was for alternative-fuel vessels, with LNG dual-fuel accounting for 60% of that figure. More than 1,369 LNG dual-fuel vessels are now in operation or on order globally. By most measures, the transition appears to be happening.

Look at who is actually placing those orders. MSC. Hapag-Lloyd. CMA CGM. Carriers with balance sheets large enough to absorb the cost premium of alternative-fuel newbuilds and relationships with Chinese leasing companies that extend leverage ratios unavailable to most of the industry. The Strait of Hormuz disruption this March accelerated that activity further: LNG tanker charter rates spiked above $200,000 per day and carriers with deep pockets moved to lock in fuel flexibility. Meanwhile, for vessels under 6,000 TEU, orders for conventionally fuelled tonnage rose to 28% of capacity ordered in 2025, up from 19% the year before. That is not a story of broad commitment to green fuels. It is a story about who has access to capital.

An alternative-fuel newbuild costs materially more than a conventional equivalent. Methanol-ready designs, ammonia-ready structures, LNG dual-fuel systems, each carries a cost premium above the base vessel price. For an independent shipowner financing through a traditional bank, that gap is increasingly difficult to bridge. Top-40 bank lending to shipping fell from $454.9 billion in 2011 to $284.3 billion by end-2023. The Chinese leasing companies that absorbed part of that contraction are structurally oriented toward Chinese-built vessels under long-term contracts with tier-one counterparties. Independent bulk owners, mid-tier tanker operators, feeder container companies: they are working with a materially shrunken pool of willing lenders at precisely the moment they are being asked to upgrade their fleets.

This bifurcation deserves more attention from the marine fuels industry than it currently receives. Bunkering infrastructure investment follows demand signals. Alternative-fuel bunkering at secondary ports, methanol at regional hubs, LNG outside the major transhipment centres, requires a broader fleet base of alternative-fuel vessels to justify the investment. If green fuel adoption stays concentrated among a handful of majors rather than spreading across the independent owner fleet, the economics of scaling bunkering supply infrastructure outside the primary corridors remain thin.

Capital market structure and marine fuel adoption are connected, and pretending otherwise slows both. Digital instruments representing economic exposure to vessel-owning Special Purpose Vehicles, structured within regulated frameworks like VARA in Dubai, can extend the base of capital available to shipowners below the tier-one threshold. That capital base does not replace bank lending. It reaches operators that bank lending currently does not.

The Hormuz disruption reminded the industry that fuel supply chains carry geopolitical risk. The financing gap raises a quieter but equally structural point: the demand side of the green fuel equation depends on shipowners being able to afford the vessels that create that demand. Alternative-fuel bunkering infrastructure will scale when the fleet ordering those vessels does. Right now, that fleet is smaller than the order book numbers suggest.

About the Author

Vikas Pandey is a Master Mariner with decades at sea across various vessel categories. He is Founder and CEO of Shipfinex FZCO, a maritime asset tokenization platform operating under VARA In-Principle Approval (IPA/26/01/002) in Dubai and registered as a Virtual Asset Service Provider in Poland.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instrument or virtual asset. Maritime Asset Tokens are virtual assets; values may decline materially below purchase price. VARA In-Principle Approval does not constitute a final licence.

Linkedin: https://ae.linkedin.com/in/capt-vikaspandey
Website: https://www.shipfinex.com/

Photo credit: Shipfinex
Published: 4 June, 2026

MSC Group’s Cruise Division used 9,839 metric tonnes (mt) of renewable fuels in 2025 across its fleet, according to its 2025 Sustainability Report published last week. 

The company used a combination of bio-LNG and biofuels across its fleet, resulting in emissions reduction of 48,714 mtCO2e compared to equivalent fossil fuels. 

Based on the Energy Transition Plan, the report showed that MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys remain on track to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for marine operations by 2050. In 2025, MSC Group’s Cruise Division achieved the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) 2030 carbon intensity reduction target five years ahead of schedule. 

The report said the MSC Cruises demonstrated a net-zero voyage using biomethane was possible with the launch of MSC Euribia in 2023. 

Since then it has actively engaged with fuel producers and suppliers to secure affordable high quality renewable fuels and in 2026, it began blending them into its operations at scale. 

The bio-LNG it sourced in 2025 was produced from a variety of different sustainable feedstocks, including food waste, sewage sludge, organic municipal waste and, most notably, manure. 

As most of its fleet remains conventionally powered, biodiesel represents the only drop-in solution available for these vessels today. 

In 2025, MSC Europa ran on a total of 6,856 mt of bio-LNG while MSC Opera used 1,727 mt of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). MSC Seaview sailed using 572 mt of HVO and 684 mt of a B24-VLSFO blend. 

Photo credit: MSC Cruises
Published: 3 June, 2026

Carnival Cruise Line’s LNG-powered flagship, Carnival Jubilee, recently bunkered LNG marine fuel in Roatán, Honduras.

According to Francesco Scarso, Senior First Engineer of Carnival Cruise Line, the event marked the first-ever ship-to-ship (STS) LNG bunkering operation to take place in Roatán.

“​I recently acted as the Person in Charge (PIC) for the inaugural Ship-to-Ship (STS) LNG bunkering operation ever to take place in Roatán, Honduras—fueling Carnival Cruise Line’s beautiful LNG-powered flagship, the Carnival Jubilee,” he said in a social media post. 

“Executing a cryogenic transfer for an Excel-class vessel in a brand-new location brings immense responsibility. From coordinating with port authorities to managing strict safety zones, ensuring ESD link integration, the operation required total focus and zero room for error.”

He added that ​this successful operation marked a giant leap forward for sustainable shipping and the expansion of LNG fueling options.

Photo credit: Francesco Scarso
Published: 2 June, 2026