Eagle Bulk Shipping partners with GoodFuels to complete first biofuel voyage

Eagle Bulk Shipping, one of the world's largest owner-operators in the mid-size dry bulk segment, said Dec. 8 it has successfully completed its first sustainable biofuel voyage in cooperation with GoodFuels as it advances its sustainable shipping goals.

"Eagle continues to actively explore ways to decarbonize its fleet, while maximizing efficiency in line with international targets to reduce carbon intensity and absolute emissions from shipping," Jonathan Dowsett, director of fleet performance at Eagle Bulk Shipping, said in a statement Dec. 8.

The 63,529 DWT bulk carrier MV Sydney Eagle was bunkered with GoodFuels' advanced marine biofuel during a port call at Terneuzen in the Netherlands, the company said.

"Basis the company's calculations, the vessel's well-to-exhaust CO2 emissions were reduced by approximately 90% during its voyage compared with utilizing traditional bunker fuel," it added.

GoodFuels' biofuels are produced from certified renewable feedstocks labeled as 100% waste or residue that cannot be used for any higher quality application or recycling, such as used cooking oil and waste animal fats, GoodFuels said separately on its website.

The biofuels drop into tanks without any alterations to the fuel infrastructure or marine engines and ensure compliance with the International Maritime Organization's sulfur cap as they are virtually free of all SOX emissions, it added. The IMO implemented the 0.5% global low sulfur mandate from Jan. 1, 2020.

Sustainability initiatives

Eagle in its 2021 sustainability report said it was committed to reducing the adverse environmental impact of shipping. "In order to comply with this [IMO] regulation, we chose to retrofit the majority of our fleet with exhaust gas cleaning systems," it said.

"As of today, 89% of our owned fleet is scrubber-fitted, with the balance consuming VLSFO," the company said in the report released July 1.

Eagle said it was a founding member of the Clean Shipping Alliance 2020, a group of companies committed to compliance with the IMO's sulfur limit, and was also tackling its carbon footprint.

The IMO in April 2018 laid out its strategy on greenhouse gas emissions, aiming to cut the shipping industry's total GHG output by at least 50% from 2008 levels by 2050 and to reduce CO2 emissions per transport work by at least 40% by 2030.

Eagle is also a member of the Getting to Zero Coalition and an early signatory to the Sea Cargo Charter. The GTZ Coalition is a cross-sector alliance of companies and governments working to get commercially viable zero-emission vessels into operation by 2030, while the SCC provides a global framework for aligning chartering activities with responsible environmental behavior through transparent voyage level emissions reporting.

Eagle has also been rejuvenating its fleet to optimize performance efficiency.

"Since commencing our comprehensive fleet renewal initiative about five years ago, we have turned over 55% of our fleet, which now totals 53 ships," it said.

"During this period, we have been able to improve our fleet fuel efficiency [as measured by emissions per DWT] by approximately 15%, while maintaining our average fleet age at 8-9 years," it added.

Some of the technologies applied to its fleet includes wake equalizing ducts, pre-swirl fins, post-swirl fins, low friction hull coatings and high frequency data collection through onboard sensors to enable real time fuel consumption optimization.

In its latest quarterly results released Nov. 4, Eagle said its voyage expenses for the nine months ended Sept. 30 were $81.4 million, compared with $70 million in the same period of 2020, and attributed the increase to higher bunker consumption costs and a rise in broker commission expenses resulting from an increase in revenue.