GoodFuels opens Singapore office to serve demand for marine biofuel in Asia-Pacific region

GoodFuels, BHP, and Oldendorff Carriers, with support of Singapore's maritime and port authority, conducted the first marine biofuel trial involving an ocean-going vessel bunkered in Singapore last April. (Photo: GoodFuels)

GoodFuels is expanding its activities into the Asia-Pacific region with the opening of a first office in Singapore. This new permanent presence in the region will enable GoodFuels to respond to the fast-growing global demand for its marine biofuels, which reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping by up to 90 percent.

The Singapore office will be GoodFuels’ second office and its first outside of Europe. From the new office, GoodFuels will source and deliver its sustainable advanced biofuels directly to one of the world’s most important shipping and marine fuel hubs. The announcement marks the arrival in Asia of GoodFuels’ unique technology and biofuels blends, which “drop in” conventional tanks to cut carbon emissions without requiring any alterations to the fuel infrastructure or marine engines.

Singapore was chosen as the target for GoodFuels’ first international expansion because of its importance to the global shipping industry and its leading position as a key bunkering hub, with mature bunkering infrastructure that will support the delivery of marine biofuel.

The new Singapore office will be led by Jing Xieng JX Han, GoodFuels’ newly appointed general manager for Asia-Pacific. She brings 20 years of experience in the energy sector, with a particular focus on corporate strategy, business development, and investment.

As with its European headquarters, GoodFuels’ trademark quality and sustainability standards will continue to be implemented in the new Singapore hub, with an independent panel ensuring that all feedstocks are sustainably sourced, do not impact food production or cause deforestation. GoodFuels’ advanced biofuels are produced from feedstocks that are certified as 100 percent waste or residue, including sawdust, crude tall oil (a byproduct of wood pulp manufacture), tallow, sewage sludge, and used cooking oils from industrial applications.

Over the past seven years, GoodFuels has completed hundreds of biobunkerings with companies from around the globe and on a variety of vessel types, including dry bulk, containerships, tankers, and ro-ro vessels. The new Singapore office will offer a local option to GoodFuels’ existing clients that operate in Asia, while also responding to fast-growing demand from other companies in the region.

“The launch of this first regional office is a major milestone for GoodFuels, strongly setting us up in one of the most important shipping hubs,” said Dirk Kronemeijer, founder and CEO of GoodFuels. “This is a unique opportunity to have an even greater positive impact on the environment, by scaling up our sustainable biofuels to enable more shipping companies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions today. In recent years, we have seen spectacular growth in the demand for our products coming from all regions of the world. At GoodFuels, we have a proven track record in creating sustainable fuels markets, and we are eager to partner with even more pioneers who are dedicated to doing the right thing for the planet.”

Han, the newly appointed GoodFuels Asia-Pacific general manager, said, “I am excited to be joining the passionate team at GoodFuels, and I look forward to making a tangible difference for the climate by reducing shipping’s reliance on fossil fuels. GoodFuels has a proven track record in Europe of pioneering the use of biofuels in transportation, especially in the shipping sector. I am eager to build on the team’s success in the West to support environmentally-minded shipowners in the Asia Pacific region in their decarbonization journey.”

The chief executive of Singapore’s maritime and port authority (MPA), Quah Ley Hoon, added, “MPA had previously worked with GoodFuels when it conducted the first marine biofuel trial involving an ocean-going vessel bunkered in Singapore in 2021. We are pleased to now welcome GoodFuels to Singapore. MPA remains committed to the environmental sustainability of the shipping industry and welcomes interested parties to join us on this journey.”