The introduction of new global standards for marine fuel has the potential to put pressure on the trucking industry, according to FreightWaves.com.
The new standards, known as IMO 2020, limit the sulfur content in marine fuel to 0.5%, down from the previous ceiling of 3.5%. Shipping operators seeking to comply with the new rule have three options: installing scrubbers on smokestacks and continuing to burn high-sulfur fuel oil (HSFO), a heavy petroleum product; switching to very low-sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO), another heavy product; or switching to marine gasoil (MGO), a middle distillate.
The third option could pose problems for the trucking industry because MGO is made from vacuum gasoil (VGO), the same feedstock that refineries use to produce road diesel. Increased demand for MGO in the marine sector could, therefore, lead to higher prices for the type of fuel that powers the trucking industry, FreightWaves.com said.