Østensjø Rederi offers biofuel-powered offshore operations to customers

Norwegian offshore and towage services provider Østensjø Rederi has announced that it is now offering biofuel-powered offshore operations to its customers.

PHOTO: Østensjø Rederi’s biofuel-fuelled tugboat Vivax. Østensjø Rederi

When a customer chooses biofuel for towage operations, the biofuel will be used on Østensjø Rederi’s tugboat, Vivax. The biofuel used during the operations will then replace the equivalent amount of conventional marine fuel on the customer's chartered vessel.

This means that the biofuel used on Østensjø Rederi's tugboat, Vivax, offsets the carbon emissions produced by the chartered vessel.

Østensjø Rederi will provide a statement that certifies “the operation/cargo run/time frame etc., have been carried out with a zero-emission footprint.”

As part of the initiative, the offshore service provider recently bunkered Vivax with 50,000 litres of biofuel, HVO Diesel 100 (hydrotreated vegetable oil) commonly known as B100 (100% biofuel).

HVO Diesel 100 is based on 100% renewable raw materials. The biofuel is “made by hydrating vegetable oil produced mainly from waste food etc that would otherwise be disposed of or go unused,” and “is completely free of palm oil/PFAD,” Østensjø Rederi claims.

The biofuel is nearly identical to fossil diesel and can be used in any diesel engine. It reduces greenhouse gas emissions by up to 90% compared to the fossil version, the company adds.

By Tuhin Roy

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