Canadian methanol producer Methanex has partnered with regional barge operators to deliver stems in Europe’s Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub and in South Korean ports.

IMAGE: Container ship docked in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Getty Images

Tanker operator TankMatch will handle deliveries and bunkering via barges in the ARA region, Methanex said.

The partnership with TankMatch builds on OCI Global’s existing bunkering arrangement with UniBarge, boosting Methanex’s delivery capacity in the region, it added. Methanex recently acquired OCI Global’s methanol business, including its US and European assets and HyFuels arm, which supplies biomethanol for bunkering.

In South Korea, last-mile deliveries and bunkering will be managed by local tanker operators Hyodong Shipping and Alpha Maritime.

“These partnerships allow us to safely and reliably fuel ships with methanol in two of the busiest global trade corridors that are pivotal to maritime decarbonization,” said Mark Allard, senior vice president at Methanex.

The company has not yet specified whether the methanol supplied will be grey, or blended with green methanol, but said it has developed safety and technical guidelines based on international standards to promote methanol as a marine fuel.

By Konica Bhatt

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