IBIA CONVENTION 2025: Conventional Fuel Demand Expected Flat for Next Few Years

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Tuesday November 25, 2025

Little further recovery in global bunker volumes can be expected in the coming years, delegates at the IBIA Annual Convention heard last week.

Conventional bunker demand remains under sustained pressure from improved fuel-efficiency measures from the shipping industry as it seeks to cut fuel bills and reduce emissions.

Conventional demand is unlikely to keep up with historical gains in demand, especially at a time when demand is also shifting to alternative fuels, a speaker at the IBIA Annual Convention in Hong Kong said last week.

The speaker was commenting under the Chatham House rule, meaning his comments can be quoted but not attributed.

"When we look back at the data from the last 20 years, bunker demand is increasing by about 2.3-3% per year," the speaker said.

"When we look forward into the next couple of years - if it's too far, it's very difficult to detect - I think we are seeing that the situation is easing.

"We're supposed to see growth of 2.3-3%, but I think for 2026 to 2027 the bunker demand will probably remain flat on the conventional.

"The growth will be going to the renewables."

Annual global bunker demand has yet to recover the level seen in 2019 before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Ship & Bunker and 2050 Marine Insight's quarterly volumes survey.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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