Digitalising the delivery of green methanol

The delivery saw OCI Fuels and barge operator UniBarge supply green methanol to to X-Press Feeders using the Electronic Bunker Delivery Note (eBDN) solution.

“This marks the first of many digital green fuel deliveries – and points to the broader change happening in the bunker industry,” said Nicolai Bendixen, managing director at ZeroNorth Bunker.

“As the industry adapts to new fuels, regulatory pressure and growing expectations around transparency, solutions like eBDN will play a key role. We’re proud to support this transformation and grateful to partner with OCI Fuels in making it happen.”

Digital transition

ZeroNorth Bunker said that eBDN solutions digitalise the administrative processes, helping streamline bunkering operations and improving efficiency and transparency during the process.

This may be the first fully digital delivery of green methanol, but it’s not the first time the eBDN has been used to bunker the green fuel in port.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has been using digital bunkering since November 2023, making Singapore the first port in the world to do so. 

In May 2024, MPA conducted the first simultaneous methanol bunkering and cargo operation at Tuas Port using the MFM system for methanol and digital bunkering.

The learnings and experience gained, including in fuelling procedure, crew training and emergency responses, have contributed to the development of its Technical Reference (TR) 129 on Methanol Bunkering.

This guidance is being used to provide a comprehensive framework for the safe and efficient use of methanol as an alternative fuel for bunkering operations.