IOC: 5-year Tender on Scrubber-fitted Tankers
Indian Oil Corp (IOC) issued a global tender to charter scrubber-fitted oil tankers for at least five years to import Iraqi oil, a tender document seen by Reuters showed.The tender says Indian shippers will be given first right of refusal for the contract as the nation seeks to boost its shipping industry. It is seeking bids from vessels that are less than 10-years old.A scrubber is a product that strips out sulphur emissions and, in doing so, can allow shippers to use dirtier fuel oil but still meet new global requirements for lower emissions.IOC and the country's second biggest state-owned refiner, Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL), last year also issued similar tenders seeking vessels for five years.The two refiners…
Ship Owners Are Scrambling to Install Scrubbers
Ship owners accelerated installations of engine emissions cleaning systems this year ahead of stringent new rules in 2020 which sharply reduce the amount of sulphur ships can emit from the 3.5 percent in current bunker fuel to 0.5 percent, according to a report.Vessel operators can either switch to cleaner, but more expensive, marine gasoil or install scrubbers to filter sulphur from dirtier fuel oil.The looming change in International Maritime Organization (IMO) rules has impacted…
New Rules on Ship Emissions Herald Sea Change for Oil Market
New rules coming into force from 2020 to curb pollution produced by the world's ships are worrying everyone from OPEC oil producers to bunker fuel sellers and shipping companies.The regulations will slash emissions of sulfur, which is blamed for causing respiratory diseases and is a component of acid rain that damages vegetation and wildlife.But the energy and shipping industries are ill-prepared, say analysts, with refiners likely to struggle to meet higher demand for cleaner…
Calif. Fines Shippers $440K for Violating Fuel Regulation
The California Air Resources Board has fined three international shipping companies a combined $440,250 for failure to switch from dirty bunker fuel to cleaner, low-sulfur marine distillate fuel upon entering Regulated California Waters, as required by state law. “Ships en route to California ports emit thousands of tons of diesel exhaust each year,” said ARB Enforcement Chief Jim Ryden. An ARB investigation showed that on 17 visits to California ports between November 6, 2009 and July 18, 2011, the vessel Hoegh Inchon operated its main engines within Regulated California Waters on bunker fuel, a dirtier fuel oil that contributes to onshore pollution levels of diesel particulate matter, sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides. The parent company, Hoegh Autoliners Shipping AS Co.
