FUELEU Maritime Requirements, compliance strategies, and commercial impacts

 The forthcoming regulations from the EU and likely the IMO are set to significantly affect the shipping industry, imposing substantial costs on vessel owners. This white paper gives an overview of the key requirements set out in the FuelEU Maritime Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2023/1805), hereafter referred to as ‘FuelEU Maritime’. 

We also use case studies to illustrate financial implications of the regulation, including identification of compliance strategies to reduce total costs. Moreover, we provide an overview of the roles and responsibilities of key actors in relation to FuelEU Maritime, focusing on commercial impacts. Finally, we give the latest status of IMO regulatory development on greenhouse gases (GHGs).

Full report may be downloaded at,

https://maritimecyprus.com/2024/12/11/%F0%9D%90%85%F0%9D%90%AE%F0%9D%90%9E%F0%9D%90%A5%F0%9D%90%84%F0%9D%90%94-%F0%9D%90%8C%F0%9D%90%9A%F0%9D%90%AB%F0%9D%90%A2%F0%9D%90%AD%F0%9D%90%A2%F0%9D%90%A6%F0%9D%90%9E-%F0%9D%90%91%F0%9D%90%9E/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=new_daily_mc_html_campaign

Is tank cleaning a cause of unnecessary enclosed space risks??

Ship managers’ association InterManager reported there had been 8 enclosed space deaths in seven days in December 2023, three seafarers and five shore workers. (It did not say what type of ships they were). He also said there were 31 known enclosed space deaths on ships in the 2023 calendar year, and 310 known enclosed space deaths on ships since 1996.

“We have crew members and shore workers placed under unrealistic time pressures to conduct high-risk tasks such as tank cleaning, and we have confusing instructions which vary from ship to ship as to what procedures and protocols must be followed,” said Captain Kuba Szymanski, secretary general of InterManager.
“This is an industry-wide issue which everyone in the shipping community must work together to resolve.”
“It’s not enough to blame the seafarers and offer additional training. Accident investigations must delve deeper into why people make the decisions they do and examine what external pressures impact those decisions.

“Ship architects and builders must work harder to design out these hazardous spaces where possible.”

Guy Johnson, owner of chemical tanker cleaning consultancy L&I Maritime, believes that tank cleaning could be done much more efficiently and safely.
“The mechanics of tank cleaning has not really changed in a long time,” he said. “We are all cleaning to standards that are set by commercial interests who have no real interest or understanding in how the cleaning is done, or whether or not it impacts the environment and crew safety.” “I am still trying to get the industry to eliminate the wall wash inspection, but my arguments, however sound, fall on deaf ears, because cargo quality is far more important than CO2 emissions and multiple confined space entry.”
“I recently set a poll on LinkedIn asking whether or not the chemical tanker industry should push IMO to ban wall wash inspections on safety and environmental grounds. Whilst I received a lot of positive comments, and thousands of reads, only 81 people voted.

è Combination carriers

Torvald Klaveness of Oslo operates 16 ‘combination carrier’ vessels. These can take both dry and wet cargo, with comprehensive cleaning in between.
A typical operation could be carrying sugar from a bioethanol plant in Brazil to India, then taking diesel from India to Brazil on the return leg. Other Brazilian products consumed in India are grain, soyabeans and caustic soda.
The tank cleaning can take 2-3 days, involving robots and infrared measurements. A combination carrier has much reduced carbon emissions in comparison to having two  vessels which carry cargo to a destination and sail back empty. The carbon benefits are also in shipbuilding, because one vessel replaces two. Combination carriers also reduce the
number of crew required, because an empty vessel still needs crew.
The average vessel spends only 30 per cent of its time laden, says Ernst Meyer, CEO of Klaveness.
The company has two types of combination carriers. Its “CLEANBU” vessels are both LR1 tankers and Kamsarmax dry bulk vessels, able to carry all dry bulk products, caustic soda and petroleum products. Its “CABU” vessels service the aluminium industry, carrying caustic soda solution and alumina, as well as other dry bulk commodities.
Combination carriers are not a new idea, but when they were introduced in the past, customers did not care so much about the savings in emissions and crewing costs. “It is a completely different world today,” he said. Mr Meyer estimates combination carriers could be viable for 10 to 15 per cent of today’s bulk shipping needs.

Ammonia as a Marine Fuel: Expert insights into the future of alternative fuels

 What is it? NH₃

Ammonia is a commonly produced industrial chemical. At ambient temperature and pressure, ammonia is a clear, colourless gas that is lighter than air. It can be absorbed in water and is corrosive, with potential for serious injury to eyes, throat and lungs. It has a distinctive pungent odour.

About 70% of current ammonia production is for the fertiliser industry (World Economic Forum, 2022) and it is seen as a critical resource for global food security. More than half of currently available ammonia is produced in four countries (China, the US, India and Russia), using hydrogen formed from natural gas and coal, then combined with nitrogen separated from the air using electricity. The hydrogen production processes, coal  gasification (26%) and steam methane reforming (73%), account for the majority of the CO₂ emitted during ammonia production today.

Production of ammonia currently emits 450 Mt of CO₂ per year, representing 1.3% of man-made emissions, the largest source of emissions in the chemical sector. While its demand from existing uses of ammonia continues to grow, new applications of ammonia as an efficient hydrogen carrier and a carbon-free fuel are set to make the most impact on demand. Global demand is expected to increase from 183 Mt in 2020 to 688 Mt in 2050. Of this new demand, less than half will be from existing uses, with 197 Mt expected from the maritime sector alone. A further 127 Mt will come the use of ammonia as a hydrogen carrier, supplying decarbonised feedstock and fuel for the chemical and industrial sectors (IRENA, 2022).

Decarbonisation efforts in sectors that already use ammonia products are adding pressure for production to become greener. There are two methods for producing the hydrogen used in the creation of clean ammonia. The first involves the use of fossil feedstocks and applying carbon capture and utilisation techniques. The second method involves using electrolysis to extract hydrogen from water, which is a cleaner alternative to reforming or gasifying hydrogen from coal or natural gas. Hydrogen from either source is combined with nitrogen extracted from the air, using the Haber-Bosch process. To produce green ammonia, renewable electricity is required for both electrolysis and for combining hydrogen with nitrogen.

Applicability

Where combustion fuel is concerned, ammonia is rising to prominence as a long-term  choice. Challenges are still being worked through but supposed ‘deal-breakers’ are quickly being surmounted, with the first ammonia-powered ships due to hit the water in 2025.

In terms of technology, engine-makers such as Wärtsilä, MAN Energy Solutions and WinGD have all reported significant progress in ammoniacapable marine engines in the past year. Bolstered by successful testing programmes and the concurrent development of fuel supply and safety mitigation systems, newbuild engines and retrofits (enabling existing engines to run on ammonia fuel) look set for commercial availability from 2025. Some pilot projects are already in operation.

Readiness of ammonia as a marine fuel

Lloyd’s Register has collaborated with industry stakeholders to build a comprehensive assessment of different aspects of the fuel supply chain from production to delivery onboard, and the technologies for use as a fuel onboard for power generation.

General safety and toxicity issues

Ammonia can be found naturally in the air, soil, water and in our bodies. It is also an ingredient in household cleaners and other household products. However, it can cause irritation and burning of the skin, mouth, throat, lungs and eyes. High levels can severely damage the lungs and lead to death. The level of harm depends on concentration and duration of exposure. Ambient ammonia vapour is lighter than air, however when compressed ammonia is released, the liquid flash evaporates, causing a heavier-than-air vapour cloud.

Recommendations

§  Lowering storage temperature to reduce the safety risk from ammonia fuel

§  Dividing the fuel preparation room into two or more separate spaces containing different groups of equipment that could leak ammonia

§  Minimising, monitoring, and controlling access to, and length of time spent, in spaces containing ammonia equipment

§  Placing ventilation outlets from spaces containing ammonia equipment in a safe location, adequately separated from areas accessed by crew, to avoid accidental release of toxic concentrations of ammonia affecting personnel

§  Installation of multiple sensors of different types to detect ammonia leaks

Ship operator demand and interest

Interest in ammonia as a fuel for shipping is driven both by its potential as a zero- or near-zero emissions fuel and by its anticipated increasing role in the world economy as an efficient, transportable energy carrier. As the world looks towards the hydrogen economy to decarbonise industry, the properties of ammonia make it more suitable to trading across oceans. And as more ships begin to carry ammonia, more will become candidates for using it as fuel. Ammonia’s growth in maritime can therefore be separated into two streams: increasing demand for ocean transportation from gas carriers, some of which will use the cargo as a fuel; and increasing demand specifically as a bunker fuel for non-gas carrying vessels.

Summary

In 2023, engine-makers began revealing their final designs. Shipbuilders will soon be able to complete and install these engines in frontrunner orders. Simultaneously, there is ongoing development in ammonia fuel supplies, with shipping companies securing offtake deals to ensure they have access to a steady supply of net-zero ammonia.

As with other low carbon intensity fuels, pricing of renewable electricity, green hydrogen  and carbon capture will all play into ammonia fuel pricing calculations. Clean ammonia producers, whether those creating new plants or incumbent manufacturers seeking to upgrade production to create blue and green ammonia, see potential in increased demand from agriculture and other sectors, as well as from shipping. This will put pressure on supply.

Another key element in ammonia deployment will be the lifecycle assessment of the fuel source to ensure vessels are fully capable of remaining compliant in an uncertain regulatory landscape. Future carbon pricing remains a key determinant in the use of any low-carbon fuel, including ammonia. Production costs remain high and the fuels have lower energy density compared to conventional fuel oils.

LR has proven it has the credentials to support companies pioneering ammonia as a fuel in the field. These include detailed HAZID, HAZOP and quantitative risk assessments, as well as several approvals in principle for vessel designs and technologies and significant technical rule development. As a fuel-agnostic and safety-oriented organisation, LR’s aim
is to assist in the development of a safe framework for the adoption of the ammonia cargo market and for ammonia’s use of other fuels.

There are significant safety challenges to the wider maritime use, and carriage of,  ammonia. By taking steps to develop this framework today, LR aims to rigorously address these challenges and avoid delay to the use of a potentially valuable fuel option for decarbonising industry and shipping.

Challenges notwithstanding, demand for oceanic transport of green ammonia as an energy carrier continues to grow. Projections indicate that a significant proportion of the world’s merchant fleet will, in the long term, benefit from the use of ammonia as fuel – delivering the first carbon-free power source for global shipping since the (first) age of sail ships.

For more details, download below the comprehensive report by LR "Fuel for Thought:
AMMONIA": https://maritimecyprus.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/LR_Fuel_for_Thought_Ammonia_c.pdf