The Emergence of B100 (FAME) in a volatile distillate market

08 Apr The Emergence of B100 (FAME) in a volatile distillate market

The 2026 Middle East conflict, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 25% of the world’s oil & 20% of LNG flows, has triggered one of the largest global energy supply disruptions in modern history. This narrow waterway is the world’s most critical energy chokepoint, with over 80% of its oil and natural gas shipments bound for Asia.

The closure of the Strait has caused supply shortages and transport paralysis with tanker traffic nearly halted. Although the Middle East conflict situation remains fluid, if this continues to worsen, then commentators have suggested that crude oil could reach record levels.

Marine Distillates are particularly exposed, with roughly 1.15 million b/d of middle distillates being impacted by the Hormuz disruption, coupled with further price drivers such as insurance premiums making distillate supply a premium.

With distillates now at historically high levels, this has given rise to attractively priced alternative Marine Fuel sources, which are not as directly affected by Middle East crude disruptions. As Biodiesel pricing is driven in part by agricultural feedstocks, the pricing gap between B100 FAME and distillates has reduced. Thus, even if B100’s nominal price per tonne remains slightly higher than distillate, the effective cost per voyage is now materially lower or near-parity. The added environmental and legislative benefits of CO2 reduction by using B100 also leads to reduced carbon taxation due to emissions pooling under FuelEU maritime regulation.

Effectively Shipowners now see a smaller economic penalty – and in some cases a net benefit for switching to B100. VPS Support through Additional Protection Service – APS-FAME

VPS additional protection service was established to provide greater understanding and insight of marine biofuel quality. Whilst the introduction of ISO8217:2024 now caters for Biofuel & Bio-blends, it is still not an all-encompassing test slate, as it places the onus on suppliers to ensure that the FAME component used for blending, or supplied as B100, complies with EN14214 or ASTM D6751. APS-FAME is therefore recommended to provide a more comprehensive assessment of fuel quality.

APS-FAME – Key Analytical Parameters Overview for B100/FAME

APS-FAME provides deeper insight beyond the ISO8217:2024 specification with respect to the quality, stability, and suitability of FAME-based marine biofuels through the following parameters: Related News