Shell joins agreement to use MOL's cargo transfer vessel off Brazil

Japanese shipping group Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has announced that Shell Brasil will now share the use of a specialised cargo transfer vessel (CTV), the SeaLoader 1, which operates off the coast of Brazil. The vessel, owned by MOL's wholly-owned subsidiary SeaLoading Holding, has been employed by TotalEnergies EP Brasil since 2020.

The new agreement allows Shell to also use the SeaLoader 1 for transferring crude oil produced by floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) units in the Santos Basin directly to conventional tankers. MOL described Shell's participation as a major milestone for the future expansion of CTV use in Brazil.

According to MOL, the CTVs are designed to connect between an FPSO and a standard crude oil tanker, enabling direct transhipment of crude oil at sea. It added that this dramatically increases the efficiency of crude oil logistics and reduces costs by eliminating the need for dedicated shuttle tankers, which would normally transport the oil from the FPSO to calmer waters for a separate ship-to-ship transfer.

There are currently only two CTVs in the world, both owned by SeaLoading, which holds the patent for the technology. MOL noted that the two vessels have completed more than 130 successful offloading operations in Brazil to date.