BAKU, Azerbaijan, Dec.19
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Brazil's Petrobras company is preparing to switch to the new regulations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on lowering the sulphur content.
From 1 January 2020, the limit for sulphur in fuel oil used on board ships operating outside designated emission control areas will be reduced to 0.50 percent m/m (mass by mass). This will significantly reduce the amount of sulphur oxides emanating from ships and should have major health and environmental benefits for the world, particularly for populations living close to ports and coasts.
Petrobras has raised its low-sulfur fuel oil supply from the country to Singapore to prepare for new IMO 2020 regulations, Trend reports citing S & P Global Platts.
"Petrobras is currently exporting more than 500,000 mt of LSFO to several destinations, including Singapore. Our fuel oil is available in the major hubs in the market such as Singapore, Arab Gulf, ARA, Mediterranean, USGC, Panama and Caribs," said a company official at Petrobras.
Reportedly, about 400,000-500,000 mt/month of low-sulfur fuel oil cargoes have been coming to the Singapore region in the fourth quarter of this year, while the volume was 100,000-200,000 mt/month before that, fuel oil traders said this week.
"We hold a long term storage contract in Singapore that Petrobras uses to blend its product into IMO-complaint bunker to sell it in ex-wharf basis," the official said.
IMO regulations to reduce sulphur oxides (SOx) emissions from ships first came into force in 2005, under Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (known as the MARPOL Convention). Since then, the limits on sulphur oxides have been progressively tightened.
The main type of “bunker” oil for ships is heavy fuel oil, derived as a residue from crude oil distillation. Crude oil contains sulphur which, following combustion in the engine, ends up in ship emissions. Sulphur oxides (SOx) are known to be harmful to human health, causing respiratory symptoms and lung disease. In the atmosphere, SOx can lead to acid rain, which can harm crops, forests and aquatic species, and contributes to the acidification of the oceans.
Limiting SOx emissions from ships will improve air quality and protects the environment.
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