Bunker One supplies B30 at Danish port

Market: Biofuels, Oil products
26/07/23

Danish marine fuel supplier Bunker One has completed a B30 fuel supply to Germany's TUI Cruises at the port of Aarhus in Denmark.

Bunker One said supply of the B30 blend — which comprised 70pc marine gasoil with 0.1pc sulphur (MGO), and 30pc advanced fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) — to TUI was completed in the middle of June. TUI cruises subsequently tested the fuel on its Mein Shiff 4, and the operation was successful.

Bunker One refused to comment on whether any further supply will be conducted on a contract basis with TUI cruises, but did say it is able to supply bio-blended bunker fuels and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) in Danish, Swedish and German ports. It did not comment on which bio producers and refineries they are working with to obtain the bio-components, but confirmed the blending operations are done in-house.

Argus assessed the price of B30 marine biodiesel at $725.54/t in July, up by nearly $25/t from the average in June.

By Hussein Al-Khalisy

Related news posts

Argus illuminates the markets by putting a lens on the areas that matter most to you. The market news and commentary we publish reveals vital insights that enable you to make stronger, well-informed decisions. Explore a selection of news stories related to this one.

News

15/05/25

New Zealand approves rules to raise jet fuel storage

Sydney, 15 May (Argus) — New Zealand has approved regulations to increase jet fuel storage in or around Auckland Airport before November next year to stop fuel supply disruptions. The regulations approved by New Zealand's government mean that fuel companies have until 1 November 2026 to invest in sufficient fuel storage, allowing them to have 10 days' worth of cover at 80pc operations , a measure introduced in a 2019 inquiry. New Zealand imported an average of around 22,000 b/d of jet fuel in the three months to 12 May, according to trade analytics platform Kpler data. Fuel companies have also agreed to invest in a new storage tank near Auckland Airport, according to New Zealand's associate energy minister Shane Jones. Auckland Airport had a pipeline rupture in 2017 that impacted almost 300 flights and resulted in an inquiry in 2019. The recommendation from the inquiry has not been met by fuel companies, said Jones, leaving New Zealand at risk of fuel supply disruptions. The government also updated the rules regarding fuel companies giving government visibility on the amount of jet fuel they hold near Auckland Airport. Jet fuel importers in Australia must have a baseline stock level of 27 days since July 2024, up from 24 days previously. By Susannah Cornford Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Find out more

News

Refinery maintenance to limit Bahrain's bitumen exports

15/05/25

News

15/05/25

Refinery maintenance to limit Bahrain's bitumen exports

Mumbai, 15 May (Argus) — Bitumen export supply from Bahrain state-controlled refiner Bapco's 267,000 b/d Sitra refinery is expected to fall in May-June because of upcoming planned maintenance work and subsequent upgrading work at the plant, international bitumen traders and importers told Argus . The planned maintenance is scheduled to start around the end of May and will limit bitumen output as a vacuum distillation unit (VDU) will be taken off line, market participants close to the refinery said, but further details on the turnaround was unavailable. Some international traders and importers told Argus that Bapco will not offer waterborne cargoes during the turnaround, which is expected to last through June, and available inventories will be reserved for domestic consumption. Listed seaborne bitumen prices are at $370/t fob Sitra, unchanged since mid-April. Earlier this month, the 3,394 deadweight tonne Sidra Al Wakra vessel loaded a 3,100t cargo from Sitra for discharge in Qatar, shiptracking data from global trade and analytics firm Kpler show. The same vessel is scheduled to load a similar-sized cargo in the coming week, the data showed, but it was unclear if this would be the last bitumen tanker loading schedule ahead of the turnaround. Import demand for Bahraini cargoes has been lacklustre since 2024 because of competitive offers from neighbouring Iran, and only those with special requirements were enquiring for Bahraini cargoes. Import demand was mostly from Qatar, the UAE, and South Africa's Durban. The weekly fob Iran bulk price was assessed by Argus at $342.50/t on 9 May, at a discount of $27.50/t to Bahrain's listed seaborne prices. The Argus -assessed fob Iran bulk prices were at a discount of $109.90/t on average to Bahrain's listed seaborne prices in 2024. The discounts widened to as high as $201/t at the end of May last year. Meanwhile, the Sitra refinery is undergoing upgrading as part of the $7bn flagship Bapco Modernisation Project (BMP), which will increase the refinery's capacity to 380,000 b/d from 267,000 b/d. The project was inaugurated towards the end of last year and currently the refinery is likely starting up secondary units, but further details on the progress of this were not available. The upgraded refinery will primarily increase output of middle distillates, indicating that output of heavier products such as bitumen will be reduced, especially with the start-up of the secondary units. By Sathya Narayanan, Ieva Paldaviciute and Keyvan Hedvat Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

German road firms issued €10.5mn tender-rigging fines

14/05/25

News

14/05/25

German road firms issued €10.5mn tender-rigging fines

London, 14 May (Argus) — German competition authorities have found seven companies guilty of co-ordinating tenders and contracts with order values usually of between €40,000 and €200,000. The German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt) imposed fines totalling €10.5mn ($11.8mn) on seven road repair companies for customer and tender collusion, it announced on 13 May. The companies involved are AS Asphaltstrassensanierung, bausion Strassenbau-Produkte, Bitunovia, Gerhard Herbers, alles fur den Bau, Mainka Strassenunterhaltung, and Muritzer Oberflechentechnik (Mot). The companies AS, bausion, Herbers and Bitunova were found to have divided various clients from the federal states of Saxony, Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt among themselves across 2018 and 2019. In 2016-19, the companies bausion, Liesen, Mainka and Mot were discovered to have regularly co-ordinated on tenders from public contracting authorities in Brandenburg and, in 2016 and 2017, Saxony-Anhalt, and the companies Liesen and Mot also co-ordinated tenders in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The violations affected a large number of tenders and contracts from public contracting authorities such as municipalities and state road construction authorities. The orders included road repair measures including surface treatment, patching of road surfaces, crack repair or the supply of bitumen emulsion or chippings. In addition to breaking antitrust law, the bid agreements are also punishable under Section 298 of the Criminal Code. The findings came to a head when the German Federal Cartel Office carried out a search operation in August 2019 together with the Dusseldorf Public Prosecutor's Office and the North Rhine-Westphalia State Criminal Police Office. When setting the fine, it was taken into account that Bitunovia had co-operated with the federal office within the framework of the leniency programme. All proceedings were concluded by way of amicable settlement and the fine notices are final. By Fenella Rhodes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

UK ethanol sector sees lower prices from US trade deal

14/05/25

News

14/05/25

UK ethanol sector sees lower prices from US trade deal

London, 14 May (Argus) — The UK ethanol sector expects prices to fall because of the recent trade deal with the US, but participants are divided on the scale of the effect. The trade deal has cut import duties on US ethanol to zero on higher volumes than recent import levels, raising the prospect of large amounts of US product crossing the Atlantic. The UK was the second largest destination for US ethanol exports in 2024, taking more than 923mn l, or 13pc of all exports, according to US industry group Renewable Fuels Association. The UK imposed a duty of £16/hectolitre ($21/hectolitre) for undenatured ethanol and £8.50/hectolitre for denatured ethanol, which the trade deal will remove. Zero tariffs will be applied to up to 1.4bn l/yr. European renewable ethanol association ePure told Argus the deal presents a "huge problem" for UK and EU ethanol producers, a view echoed by some UK market participants. But some active in the UK ethanol market have said that while they do not expect greater amounts of ethanol to arrive in the country, they do anticipate lower prices and lower domestic production. The operators of the UK's two major ethanol-producing facilities, Vivergo and Cropenergies, said there will be zero tariffs on "the size of the UK's whole ethanol market", and said they may have to close. According to Argus data the total UK production capacity for wheat-based ethanol is over 736mn l/yr. The National Farmers' Union expressed concern about the deal's effect on arable farmers, and said it is "working through what this means for the viability of the domestic bioethanol production." Although a healthy share of the total import pool from the US is waste-based, the UK government is consulting on whether to continue classing the main waste feedstock imported from the US as eligible for double counting under its renewable transport fuel obligation (RTFO). Staging post UK producers may still seek to maximise imports from the US for onward export into the EU. The current EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) allows for zero tariffs and quotas on all trade of UK and EU goods that comply with appropriate rules or origin. But with this new deal, there is an increased chance of US ethanol entering the EU via the UK, Epure said. "Under existing customs rules US ethanol can be mixed with UK ethanol and thus avoid an EU duty," it said. This may include major proportion, which limits the share of non-originating materials to claim UK origin, or inward processing relief, which allows for imports to be processed without paying import duties or value added tax (VAT) before re-export. Some market participants contested the extent to which UK-EU flows of ethanol with partial US origin might happen, suggesting the imported ethanol would need to undergo a significant chemical change to be classified as duty free, such as being used as feedstock for products including ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE). EPure said the EU should be wary, and called for ethanol to be included in a final list of products subject to EU countermeasures, as it was in a recent proposal from the bloc currently under public consultation. By Toby Shay Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

MUFG to invest $30mn in Japanese biofuels firm Euglena

14/05/25

News

14/05/25

MUFG to invest $30mn in Japanese biofuels firm Euglena

Singapore, 14 May (Argus) — Japanese bank MUFG has agreed to purchase up to $30mn of shares in Japanese biofuels developer Euglena, which will allow Euglena to increase its share in a joint venture to build a biorefinery in Malaysia. Euglena will issue the shares in stages via their overseas special purpose company Euglena Sustainable Investment (Esil). Esil currently owns a 5pc equity of the joint venture and plans to increase its share up to the maximum of 15pc with the new funding. The other partners are Eni's biofuels unit Enilive and Malaysian state-owned refiner Petronas' Petronas Mobility Lestari. The biorefinery started construction in the fourth quarter of 2024, and is scheduled to start operations in the latter half of 2028. It will have the capacity to process about 650,000 t/yr of raw materials, such as used vegetable oils, animal fats, waste from the processing of vegetable oils and other biomass including microalgae oils, to produce up to 725 kilolitres/yr of SAF, hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO) and bio-naphtha. The biofuel developer, whose initial business was the cultivation of the microalgae Euglena for food, had previously also announced that it will put more emphasis on UCO procurement and SAF supply to domestic consumers. Euglena aims to achieve a production capacity of 100,000 t/yr of microalgae-based oil by the 2030s, and is currently working with Petronas' subsidiary Petronas Research in a joint study to establish technology for large-scale microalgae production. But microalgae has so far faced challenges in commercialising as a biofuels feedstock, including high production costs, difficulty scaling up and low lipid yields. By Deborah Sun Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Business intelligence reports

Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

Learn more