ExxonMobil: Specialist ECA Fuels Have Been Well Received by the Industry

ExxonMobil's says sales of Premium AFME 200 and ExxonMobil Premium HDME 50 continue to grow.

ExxonMobil Tuesday in an emailed press release said that its line of specialist fuels designed for compliance with Emission Control Area (ECA) regulations are proving successful within the market, and it has witnessed both increasing sales coupled with "major vessel operators" advocating the use of its ExxonMobil Premium AFME 200 and ExxonMobil Premium HDME 50.

Brittany Ferries is said to have endorsed the operational benefits of AFME 200 after trials on one of its vessels, the Bretagne, explaining that the fuel solved leakage and vapour lock problems experienced using when using MGO.

The ferry company says that before using AFME, the Bretagne's engine could not be maintained at the recommended below 40°C temperature while attempting to reach optimum viscosity.

ExxonMobil says that its heavy distillate ECA category fuel, HDME 50, has helped users to minimise risk of thermal shock complications during HFO fuel switching upon entering and leaving an ECA.

"ExxonMobil Premium HDME 50 needs to be heated and handles similarly to HFO, which minimises fuel temperature differentials helping limit thermal shock problems such as fuel pump seizures and engine shutdowns," explains the company.

ExxonMobil also reiterated that independent test results have confirmed that, within reasonable parameters, both fuels are MGO and HFO compatible, except for those with high asphaltene content. 

"These lab results demonstrated that at certain ratios, our Premium ECA category marine fuels are compatible and stable with both HFO and MGO," said Rob Drysdale, ExxonMobil's Global Field Engineering & Logistics Manager.

"However, industry best practice is to avoid mixing fuel where possible. Where this is not possible, it is important to know what fuels you are buying, and test and handle them accordingly."

In March, ExxonMobil announced the launch of ExxonMobil Premium Advanced Fuel Marine ECA 200 (AFME 200), its second specialist fuel for use within ECAs following last year's launch of ExxonMobil Premium Heavy Distillate Marine ECA 50 (HDME 50).