Alternative fuel ships outpace port readiness, Lloyd’s Register finds
In the UK, ports worldwide are falling behind shipowners’ alternative fuel investments, according to a Lloyd’s Register report examining bunkering infrastructure through September 2026, revealing a widening gap between vessels on order and the facilities needed to supply them.
Nearly 2,000 alternative-fuel-capable ships were on order in January, but only 25 ports offered methanol bunkering, compared with 222 for LNG.
Lloyd’s Register identified Ulsan, South Korea, as the only port with commercial ammonia bunkering through September, but China completed a 1,000-tonne green ammonia bunkering operation at Zhoushan on Oct. 13, after the report’s research cutoff.
The report identifies fuel availability and infrastructure investment as major obstacles. Announced low-carbon methanol production capacity exceeds 61 million tonnes by 2031, but only 6 million to 12 million tonnes of renewable capacity is expected to become operational.
Biofuel blends remain the most readily available option, largely using existing infrastructure.
Lloyd’s Register concludes that fuel selection and trade routes are increasingly inseparable, making port-specific supply arrangements critical to shipowners’ investment decisions.
Category: Sustainable Marine Fuels
