PetroChina International on Thursday will use liquefied natural gas to bunker a vessel in Singapore for the first time, Chairman Wu Junli said, widening the alternative-fuel options it can offer shipowners at the world's top refuelling port.
The trading arm of Chinese state major PetroChina was one of eight firms that received LNG bunkering licences from the Singapore Government, and it also has a licence to supply methanol to ships.
PetroChina will also complete the acquisition of a methanol bunker vessel on Friday, Wu told the Singapore International Bunkering conference.
Citing Clarksons data, Wu said by the end of 2025, orders globally for alternative-fuel vessels had neared 2,000 ships, including more than 1,200 LNG-fuelled vessels.
"Methanol-fuelled vessels are expanding rapidly, while ammonia-fuelled vessels are beginning to gain momentum," he said.
However, infrastructure for emerging marine fuels significantly lags fleet development, he said, noting that the number of existing and planned methanol bunkering ports remained below 50 versus 220 LNG bunker ports worldwide.
PetroChina accounted for about 10 per cent of Singapore bunker sales last year, which exceeded 56 million tonnes.
The company sold 7.95 million tonnes of bunker fuel globally last year and can supply 18 ports with 16 bunker vessels on time charter, he added.
Last year, PetroChina completed its first commercial LNG bunkering operation in Europe and secured methanol bunkering qualification in Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
China has the capacity to produce 380,000 tonnes per year of green methanol, Wu said.
(Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Sonali Paul)