This is a fuel intensity standard therefore the fuel selected greatly affects the outcome of the calculation. Conventional fuels like, HFO, VLSFO and MGO, all incur a penalty when burned on FuelEU associated voyages. The WtW intensity of the common alternative fuels, including their production pathways, can be found in Annex II of the FuelEU regulation. The FuelEU calculator results are based on the factors from this Annex where provided.
However burning LNG as a fuel may result in a compliance surplus in the regulation after methane slip has been factored into the “well to wake” intensity calculation. The amount of methane slip, essentially unburnt fuel in the exhaust, is highly dependent on the type of engines on the ship. Engines operating on the Otto cycle, in particular the medium speed engines, produce more methane slip and therefore negligible benefit compared with slow speed engines running on the Diesel cycle, for example MAN MEGI. The latter results in a compliance balance surplus of roughly €420 /mt (mt VLSFOeq) which may be distributed to other vessels with negative compliance balances through pooling.
Alternative fuels which are produced from fossil sources, are labelled “grey”, for example grey methanol or grey ammonia. Buring these grey fuels results in a compliance deficit to be paid, in addition the higher cost of that fuel. In the case of grey methanol this is roughly €320/ mt and for ammonia €710/ mt based on metric tonnes VLSFOeq. The VSLFOeq per mt is required to provide the resulting cost based on the same energy content in the alternative fuel selected. For example, 2.3mt of methanol are required for the equivalent energy content of 1 mt VLSFO.