Serge Dal Farra highlights to shipowners the importance of lubricant choice when choosing their post 2020 fueling strategy.
Speaking to Maritime Reporter and Engineering News in January, Serge Dal Farra, global marketing manager, Total Lubmarine, advised shipowners and managers that their focus should be on lubricants and services in addition to relevant fuel choice ahead of the 1 January 2020 deadline, commenting:
“The reduction of sulfur content in marine fuel from 3.5% to 0.5% in time for the deadline means more than identifying a strategically suitable fuel choice. The importance of choosing the correct lubricant, coupled with incorporating the relevant supporting services is also a vital consideration.”
While Mr Dal Farra made it clear that Total Lubmarine supported the upcoming regulation, stating it will be “a driver for further technological evolution”, he made note of the added complexity it will have on customers:
“We are committed to our customers and we are acutely aware of the operational challenges shipowners face. The lubrication of engines requires numerous and flexible solutions. We are committed to ensuring that there is industry understanding that developing lubricants, which are suitable post 2020, is more complex than simply tweaking existing products.”
Mr Dal Farra went on to discuss the different approaches owners had at their disposal ahead of 2020, specifically highlighting low sulfur fuel oil (LSFO) as the path that Total Lubmarine believed the majority would take, warning of the importance of the right lubricant in this scenario:
“Choosing LSFO will subsequently lead to lower base number (BN) products, this introduces a dynamic issue in that when BN is reduced via conventional chemistry, there is a reduction in the ability of the lubricant to keep the engine clean. Providers must ensure that they deliver a product for shipowners choosing the LSFO route that delivers low BN aligned with effective detergency properties.”
Read the article in full from page 48 here, with the editors introduction on page 6.