Bunkers Switch Warning

The International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA) heard at its annual convention in Montreal last month that it would cost an estimated $67bn over the next five years to implement a wholesale switch from traditional bunker fuels to distillates only for the world merchant fleet. The IBIA was also told that the distillates only option, a possibility under stricter air emissions regulations imposed by a revised MARPOL Annex VI, would be unfeasible due to lack of sufficient refining capacity.