World Bunkering > News > Summer 2009 > Chairman's Introduction

Chris Fisher

It was very encouraging to see such a wonderful turnout for the annual IBIA dinner in London in February, my first as Chairman. This is now one of the biggest events in the London IP Week, which itself is the largest event of its kind in Europe. We are continually being told that 2009 is going to be a very tough year, so it was particularly pleasing to see that we had a full house and were able to demonstrate to London that the bunker industry is alive and well and full of optimism.

We must not forget, however, that many industries are facing a downturn and we shall no doubt see more ships laid up at a time when new tonnage, ordered in boom times, is delivered onto a saturated market. That said, we can take encouragement from the fact that about 90% of everything we consume spends some time as cargo on board a ship, either as a raw material or as a finished product. That will not change, and ships will always need fuel. Added to that, shipping is the most cost-effective and green method of transportation in the world.

In these early days of my Chairmanship, I am well aware of the challenges facing our industry, and am confident that IBIA is well equipped to meet them. The environment, of course, is one of the biggest of those challenges, and one which the bunker industry is very aware of, and responds to in positive fashion.

IBIA is represented at IMO, where all the important decisions are made. It formed part of the panel of experts which helped shape the changes to MARPOL Annex VI, and wholeheartedly supports moves to further reduce sulphur and other emissions from ships. IBIA believes that moves to further tighten emissions controls on shipping through changes to Annex VI should be based on a multiple-solution approach which must evaluate all credible options, including low-sulphur heavy fuel oil, distillate fuels, alternative fuels and emission abatement equipment as a means to cut emissions without compromising safety and efficiency.

The vast majority of oceangoing ships have been designed to store, treat and consume heavy residual high-sulphur fuel, and newbuildings leaving the yard now are no different in this respect.

High-sulphur residual fuel produced in a refinery has a lower value than the crude oil from which it is made, but it is a costeffective form of energy. Converting this fuel to distillate would have a very negative effect on the environment which may not be compensated by ships switching to distillates.

It seems that moves are afoot to phase out the consumption of residual fuel on ships over the next 15 years or so. But this is not set in stone, and it is to be hoped that future reviews will include scientificbased reasoning and intelligent cost/benefit relationships. IBIA will be involved in such reviews and will help with the development of practical and cost-effective solutions which will benefit both commerce and the environment. If the shipping industry has to abandon the use of residual fuel, this will create a bigger challenge than managing short-term hiccups in the global economy.

At the moment, there are more questions than answers. Can the bunker industry supply good-quality, low-sulphur residual fuel, particularly when the sulphur upper limit is 1%? Can refiners produce sufficient quantities of distillate fuel on a global basis? Where is abatement technology going?

How will existing marine engines perform on distillate fuel? Are biofuels a threat or an opportunity? For how long will shipowners want residual fuel, and when will refiners have to resort to total conversion? Can terminals use residual storage tanks to store distillate fuel, or is a huge investment needed?

IBIA has a vital role to play in all these issues. Its mission is to address the concerns of all those involved in the sale and purchase of bunkers. In that respect, it is everything that an industry association should be. It has worked hard – and will continue to work hard – on raising the awareness of buyers and sellers through training courses, and its new management structure will allow it to focus more readily, and move more quickly, on issues affecting its members.

It is clear that people from all sides of the industry must come together in a spirit of trust and understanding in an attempt to find solutions to the problems facing the industry. There has never been a more important time than now for refiners, suppliers, technologists, environmentalists, buyers, shipowners and support service providers to sit down together and work through the urgent issues facing us all.

IBIA is the natural forum for such discussions, and it is one of my goals to develop IBIA in such a way that it will actively facilitate this process at a high level across all sectors on a global basis. I am proud to accept the role of Chairman, and promise to take good care of what we have. It is my job, with your help, to make sure that, when people want to know about bunkers, they automatically come to IBIA.

Chris Fisher