Collaboration is the key ingredient driving shipping’s decarbonisation

Wärtsilä’s participation in a recent test using 100% biofuels to fuel a cruise ship’s engine was as much a demonstration of the power of collaboration as it was a technical milestone for the industry.
We worked with GoodFuels and Holland America Line (HAL) to complete the cruise industry’s first multi-week test of biofuels. The 20-day test was conducted onboard the Volendam at the Port of Rotterdam.
For five days, HAL’s vessel used a mix of 30% sustainable biofuel – supplied by biofuel pioneer GoodFuels - and 70% marine gas oil (MGO) in one of its engines – the Wärtsilä ZA40 engine - before then using 100% biofuel for the remainder of the trial.
During the subsequent 15 days, the vessel reported a minimum of 78% decrease in lifecycle CO2 emissions compared to fossil-sourced marine gas oil emissions.
The partnership marks the first testing by Wärtsilä on a cruise ship operating with 100% biofuel.
Our scope included preparation of the testing protocols, evaluation of the fuel testing and lube oil testing results, supervision of the tests and post-testing analyses, including engine inspections, performance evaluation and...