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Bulker Gets Co-Processed VLSFO Bio-Bunkering with Cashew Nutshell Liquid

bulker
The 82,144-dwt bulker made the voyage from Singapore to China, Europe and South America using the co-processed fuel with cashew nutshell liquid (Jiangsu Xinhantong Shipbuilding Heavy Industry)

Published Aug 21, 2026 5:39 PM by The Maritime Executive

Vitol Bunkers is highlighting that it completed Singapore’s first bio-bunkering operation using Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO) co-processed with Cashew Nutshell Liquid (CNSL). The bunkering took place earlier this year and was used in a successful test that took the vessel to China and then Europe, resulting in savings of at least 120 tons CO2eq.

According to the companies, the operation marks a significant step forward in the search for practical, scalable alternatives to conventional marine fuels. They said it is the latest demonstration that shows meaningful greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions can be achieved without any change to vessel operations.

The 2024-built bulker Scion Mathilda (82,144 dwt), at the time being operated by Atlantic Lloyd, was supplied with 246.5MT of co-processed VLSFO at the port of Singapore, comprising 212MT of conventional VLSFO and 34.5MT of co-processed CNSL VLSFO. The product was supplied by Vitol Bunkers and procured by Olam Agri’s ocean freight business. (The bulker was delivered in June 2026 to new owners, who renamed it Magic Saturn.) 

 

Scion Mathilda was the first to bunker in Singapore with the co-processed fuel (Vitol)

 

The fuel was consumed during a voyage that took the ship from Asia to Northern Europe and then to South America. The vessel loaded cargo from Caofeidian, China, and sailed to Rotterdam, Netherlands, followed by a ballast leg from Rotterdam to Barcarena, Brazil. Total fuel consumption across the voyage comprised 1,354MT of VLSFO, 101MT of MGO and 34.1MT of co-processed VLSFO. 

Scion Mathilda completed the voyage without any operational remarks, confirming the product’s performance in real-world conditions, notes Vitol and Olam Agri. The co-processed VLSFO carried a GHG intensity of 2.02 gCO2eq/MJ, delivering savings of at least 120 tons CO2eq compared with conventional VLSFO on an equivalent basis. This outcome was achieved with no additional onboard handling or fuel treatment requirements.

“The successful deployment of this product, achieving verified greenhouse gas mitigation alongside ensuring operational integrity, serves as a definitive proof of concept,” said Martin Fynbo, Head of Bunkers at Olam Agri’s ocean freight business. “This milestone provides validation to a traditionally risk-averse sector, demonstrating that a previously disregarded bio-product solution can both be operationally viable and sustainable.”

Vitol highlights that CNSL, derived as a by-product of cashew processing, represents an underutilised feedstock with potential as a scalable marine biofuel component. It asserts that this trial demonstrated that with the right processing approach, CNSL can be integrated into existing supply chains without disruption.