BunkeringEnvironmentEurope

Shell readies low sulphur offering

Following on from yesterday’s roll-out of low sulphur fuel outlets by BP, Reuters is reporting Shell has signed with Dutch tank terminal firm HES International to partially restart a German oil refinery mothballed since 2011 in order to produce compliant fuel ahead of 2020’s shipping sulphur cap.

HES Wilhelmshaven Tank Terminal is reinstalling its vacuum distillation unit (VDU) to produce low sulphur bunker fuels in collaboration with Shell. Shell declined to confirm the news when contacted by Reuters.

The German facility had a 260,000 barrel per day refining capacity when HES bought it from ConocoPhillips eight years ago.

HES is 70% owned by private investment firm Riverstone, with the remaining 30% held by the Carlyle Group. Infrastructure funds managed by Macquarie and Goldman Sachs have agreed in principle to buy HES.

In conjunction with the fast approaching sulphur cap, Shell Marine revealed yesterday it will launch its next-generation BN40 cylinder oil at the Sea Asia exhibition in Singapore next month.

Yesterday, Shell rival, BP, unveiled its global destinations where it will soon start to sell low sulphur from. China’s Sinopec is also set to start selling 0.5% content fuel in the coming months.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.
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