TRANSPORT NEWS THE NETHERLANDS: Leading marine service supplier Maersk Supply Service and Dutch non-profit engineering environmental organisation The Ocean Cleanup have announced positive results from a joint hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) trial. The trial involved blending biofuel into the marine gas oil on the Maersk Tender, the statement said. For the trial, the partners purchased 90M tonnes of HVO biofuel, with a mixing rate of 15% HVO and 85% low sulphur marine gas oil (MGO), Maersk Supply Service said. The HVO was able to cover two separate sixweek trips, according to the statement, and saved 38.95M tonnes of CO₂. “For now, it is very much a test, as biofuel is still an expensive alternative to standard marine gas oil. Still, it has given us valuable insight into how this can reduce our emissions further,” Maersk Supply Service managing director for Canada Chris Tibbo said. The results from the trial could pave the way for similar upgrades to be carried out on more Maersk Supply Service’s T-Class vessels. Maersk Supply Service, part of the Danish shipping company Maersk, has set a target to reduce the carbon intensity of its fleet by 50% by 2030 and to be carbon neutral by 2050.
Kinder Morgan to create storage hub with Neste Leading renewable diesel producer Neste announced on 13 September that it would create a US domestic raw material storage and logistics hub with North America energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan. The companies would create the hub to support increased production of renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable feedstock for polymers and chemicals. Upon completion, Kinder Morgan’s Harvey facility in Louisiana would become the primary hub where Neste would store a range of raw materials including the used cooking oil (UCO) it collected from more than 40,000 restaurants across the USA, Neste said. The Finnish firm refines waste, residues and raw materials into renewable fuels and sustain-
able feedstock for plastics and other materials. In the project’s initial stages, Kinder Morgan would modify existing tanks and piping for the segregated storage of a range of raw material across 30 tanks, Neste said. The project – expected to become operational in first quarter 2023 with the possibility of expansion – would also include a new boiler for heating tanks and railcars and infrastructure improvements for rail, truck and marine movements. Kinder Morgan owns an interest in, or operates, around 133,000km of pipelines which transport natural gas, refined petroleum products, crude oil, condensate, CO2 and other products. Its 144 terminals store and handle various commodities including gasoline, diesel fuel, chemicals, ethanol, metals and petroleum coke.
Canadian Pacific Railway acquires KCS Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) has agreed to acquire Kansas City Southern (KCS) for US$31bn after lengthy negotiations between three of North America’s largest rail companies, World Grain reported on 15 September. The merger would create the first US-Mexico-Canada rail network, the report said. Following the transaction, the combined rail company would expand to 32,186km and would lead to improved efficiency and supply chain integration for grain companies and others, according to a World Grain report on 25 March. To progress with its deal with CP, KCS first had to terminate its proposed merger
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IN BRIEF
Canadian Pacific’s merger with Kansas City Southern will create the first US-Mexico-Canada rail network
with Canadian National (CN), which would have significant financial implications, World Grain wrote. KCS would have to pay CN$1.4bn (US$1.1bn), which
included a termination fee of US$700M and a US$700M refund of the fee CN had paid for KCS to terminate its deal in May with CP, according to the report.
Higher dry bulk freight rates due to Chinese port congestion Port congestion in China and higher fuel costs have led to an increase in freight rates for dry bulk commodities, AgriCensus reported on 22 September. Congestion at Chinese ports remained a key factor affecting global freight markets with large port stocks creating bottlenecks and vessel queues. In addition, the after-effects of Typhoon Chanthu that hit the Chinese coast on 13 September were 14 OFI – NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021
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still affecting logistics at local ports with congestion across all four vessel sectors – Capesize, Panamax, Supramax and Handymax, the report said. Recent outbreaks of COVID-19, with increased quarantine measures, had also caused further delays. Meanwhile, freight costs had been affected by rising fuel prices, according to AgriCensus. Cargoes crossing the Atlantic from the Americas to Europe rose on 22
September compared to the previous week with Panamax routes from Brazil and the US Gulf to the Netherlands assessed at US$22.37/tonne and US$32.10/tonne respectively, AgriCensus said. In the Black Sea region, Panamax freight rates for cargoes heading to China increased to US$65.18/tonne while vessels crossing the Mediterranean to North Africa came in at $35.00/tonne. www.ofimagazine.com
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