Stena: Even with Carbon Tax, HFO with Scrubbers the Most Cost Effective ECA Solution

Harry Robertsson, technical director at Stena Teknik, says HFO bunkers with sulfur scrubbers could be shipowners' most cost effective option for ECA compliance.

Harry Robertsson, technical director at Stena Group's (Stena) vessel design subsidiary, Stena Teknik, says that even with carbon tax and other fees added to fuel prices, HFO bunkers with sulfur scrubbers could be shipowners' most cost effective option for Emission Control Area (ECA) compliance, the Motorship reports.

As a result, although other fuels may play a growing role, it is likely that Stena Group's fleet will utilise HFO with scrubbers over the next 15 years.

"Our approach to fuels is driven by the 0.1 percent sulfur limit in the North European ECA, as our activities for Stena Line and Stena RoRo are very much in this area," Robertsson said this week at the 28th CIMAC World Congress in Helsinki.

"I agree that we will have a fuel 'mosaic' in the future: different ships on different routes in different parts of the world will be running on different fuels."

Robertsson went onto explain that, in 15 years - according to Stena reasearch - LNG may become a better option for newbuild vessels where price is attractive and bunkering infrastructure is available.

In addition to the company's consideration of LNG, Stena Group says it is also considering methanol for use as marine fuel, highlighting the company's current methanol conversion work on Stena Germanica. 

The Stena vessel is noted to be currently having the third of its four medium-speed Wärtsilä engines converted to methanol-propulsion.

In December, Ship & Bunker reported that FCBI Energy had released a new report on the use of methanol as a marine fuel, which stated that the fuel has an "historic opportunity" for adoption as a marine fuel in today's market.