Australian grain co-op joins biofuel trial to clean up supply chain amid customer push
One of Oldendorff Carriers' dry bulk vessels will set off on a biofuel trial on Sunday from Australia’s Albany to Vietnam.
PHOTO: The Edwine Oldendorff previously docked in Portland Australia. Oldendorff
Australian grain growers’ cooperative CBH Group will ship 30,000 mt of malting barley on the Edwine Oldendorff, saying its customers are more and more interested in low-emission shipping of its products.
Heineken, which sources malting barley for its beer brewing, is an indirect customer of CBH and aims to make its supply chain carbon neutral by 2040.
CBH’s chief marketing and trading officer Jason Craig says the co-op has been exploring ways to make its supply chain more competitive in response to ambitions like Heineken’s. Biofuel can be part of the future-fit fuel mix, he says.
The biofuel blend will be supplied from BP and has around 15% lower greenhouse gas emissions than conventional oil-based fuels, the companies claim.
Emissions will be measured during the trial as well as the vessel’s operational performance, including speed and efficiency.
“Collaboration is crucial for us all to learn and share information about the best paths in our efforts to decarbonise the supply chain,” says Ben Harper, managing director at Oldendorff Carriers Melbourne.
