Swire Shipping, a leading Asia-Pacific shipping company, announced that three of its vessels serving the South Pacific region had successfully transitioned to using B24 and B30 second-generation biofuel blends. The voluntary adoption of these low-emission fuels marked a key milestone in Swire Shipping’s broader sustainability strategy and offered new opportunities for customers seeking to reduce their supply chain emissions.

The vessels participating in the programme included Apia Chief and Tonga Chief, operating on the Pacific Weekly Express service, which connects Southeast Asia with Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, New Caledonia and Fiji, and Kokopo Chief, which services the East Timor route between Singapore, Dili, Darwin and Surabaya. All three vessels were scheduled to bunker B24 in Singapore during the second quarter of 2025, before progressing to the use of B30.

Swire Shipping, Tonga Chief anchored in Singapore

Jeremy Sutton, CEO of Swire Shipping, commented:
“At Swire Shipping, we are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and contributing to a more sustainable future. The island nations of the South Pacific are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and this move marks an important step in our ongoing efforts to reduce emissions and support a cleaner, greener shipping industry.”

The initiative represented a cross-company collaboration within the Swire Group, bringing together Swire Shipping and sister company Argent Energy, a producer of waste-based biofuels. The project also involved a partnership with BP, which supplies biofuel in Singapore, with a focus on exploring new sustainable feedstocks for marine fuel.

Louise Calviou, chief executive officer of Argent Energy, stated:
“This successful biofuel programme highlights what can be achieved through strong international partnerships, all united by the common goal of decarbonisation. It has been especially rewarding to work alongside our sister company and other partners to accelerate the use of waste-derived biofuels. We look forward to continuing our collaborative efforts, with sustainability at the centre of all we do.”

Alongside the biofuel initiative, Swire Shipping launched its “Voyage to Zero” carbon abatement programme, designed to help customers decarbonise their supply chains. Customers participating in the programme would receive third-party verified certificates quantifying their Scope 3 emission reductions.

Susana Germino, chief sustainability & energy transition officer at Swire Shipping, added:“Swire Shipping has ambitious voluntary targets for emission reductions by 2027. The biofuel programme is a significant milestone in our decarbonisation roadmap, and with Voyage to Zero we are able to offer greater support to customers looking to decarbonise their supply chains. In this first year, the impact of the programme will be comparable to removing 2,700 cars from the road.”

The company previously conducted a successful B24 biofuel trial in August 2024, confirming the operational readiness of its owned fleet to adopt second-generation biofuels over the long term.

For more information visit www.argentenergy.com