ABS fuels advisory offers guidance on adoption of gas, low flashpoint fuels

Classification service provider the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has published its ‘Advisory on Gas and Other Low Flashpoint Fuels’, to offer guidance on current technologies, regulatory requirements and operational considerations for adopting gas and low flashpoint fuels.

“The majority of the deep-sea shipping fleet will be using conventional and emerging lower sulphur residual and distillate fuels to meet the 1 January 2020 IMO global fuel sulphur limit of 0.5%.” said Patrick Ryan, senior vice-president of engineering and technology at ABS.

“However, in the short and mid-term, shipping will trend towards a reduction in conventional fuels in favour of alternative fuels such as low flashpoint fuels and biofuels. The regulatory requirements for all options are broadly in place, but each of the fuels possess specific benefits and technical challenges.

“This Advisory is designed to help ship owners and operators understand the available technologies and technical considerations to make the right decisions for their fleet as they navigate this challenging environment.”

The guidelines focus on gas and other low flashpoint fuels that offer solutions to these sulphur regulations in the short and mid-term, according to ABS.

It also considers viable fuel solutions that could support the longer-term transition to low and zero carbon fuels.

In addition to examining the regulatory background for gas and other low flashpoint fuels, the advisory provides an overview of the technologies and operational impacts.

A copy of the advisory can be accessed here.