IBIA CONVENTION 2025: Should Ethanol Now Be Considered a Key Future Marine Fuel Candidate?

Hing Chao, chairman of Wah Kwong Maritime Transport and the Hong Kong Chamber of Shipping. Image Credit: Ship & Bunker

Should ethanol now be considered alogside methanol, LNG, and ammonia as one of the key candidates for the future marine fuel mix?

If discussion at today's IBIA Annual Convention in Hong Kong are any indication, at the very least is is a growing part of the conversation.

Both speakers and delegates gathered on the conference sidelines voiced their opinoion about the alternative fuel, with one US-based delegage noting in recent months there "has bee a lot more talk on ethanol as a serious option for marine fuel.'

On the stage, a representative from the Hong Kong Chamber of Shipping speaking during a panel discussion noted it is presently more readily available in certain parts of the world compared to methanol.

The fuel's chemical similarity to methanol also makes the transition less of a leap, they said, adding that "in certain parts of the world, ethanol or bioethanol, e-ethanol, is more readily available compared to biomethanol or e-methanol, and the ships can take both molecules, so much better."

But not everyone on the panel was convinced shipowners could commit to the fuel at this stage. Bud Darr, CEO of CLIA, said that any uptake would likely be slow.

"I think there's going to be a bit of a lag time before you have real reliability and willingness," he said.

Sustainability was another concern raised during the session.

Darr questioned how to ensure feedstocks do not compete with food production, an issue echoed by Lynn Loo, CEO of the GCMD.

"This is already true for the various kinds of feedstocks that go into producing biofuels, but ethanol, especially because it can, I mean, a large chunk of it does come from corn," Loo said.

Despite the doubts, there is no question that interest in ethanol continues to build within shipping.

Container shipping firm AP Moller Maersk recently began testing an E10 blend, 90% e-methanol and 10% ethanol, on one of its dual-fuel methanol boxships to assess the fuel's performance.

At the same time, engine makers such as Everllence and WinGD are progressing with the development of ethanol-capable engines, with WinGD planning to launch a two-stroke ethanol engine next year.

WinGD says the fuel's combustion and emission profile is similar to methanol.