Biofuel tug trial

Nippon Yusen Co. Ltd (NYK) and its affiliated company Sanyo Kaiju Co. Ltd plan to operate the trail in order to compare cost and sustainability savings with normal fuel.

Sanyo Kaiju’s tugboat Tahara Maru was supplied with fuel by mixing a certain amount of recycled edible waste oil with heavy fuel oil at Nagoya Port Garden Pier in Japan on 19 April.

Circular economy

During the trial, the partners bunkered the biofuel using the Ship-to-Ship method with a bunkering ship – the first operation of its type in Japan, according to the two companies.

Some of the fuel for this first trial was supplied by the Toyota Group and Toyota Tsusho Group companies. 

Nippon Yusen said this biofuel uses waste cooking oil as a raw material and contributes to the circular economy by building a supply chain through local production for local consumption.

Using this same method of fuel supply, the companies plan to carry out a total of three trials by July 2022. In addition, biofuel supply and test navigation will be carried out in conjunction with the Nagoya Port Authority.

The companies said that with increasing demands for reductions in greenhouse gases, biofuels are attracting attention as being already available among marine fuels to replace heavy oil. 

NYK Line and Sanyo Maritime said they will promote the use of environmentally friendly fuels such as biofuels in order to contribute to the realisation of a carbon-free society.