The Clean Arctic Alliance welcomes the 2020 sulphur ban, which should drive a switch away from the use of heavy fuel oil (HFO) towards lighter alternatives - and result in less black carbon released in the Arctic environment”, said Prior. “However, while the sulphur cap will reduce the amount of heavy fuel oil being used anywhere - including in the Arctic - it will not eliminate it completely
A number of shipping companies, including Maersk, Hapag Lloyd and Klaveness, have indicated that they will likely move to low sulphur fuels, and some fuel companies are quietly happy to sell a more expensive, 0.5% sulfur product, while hoping for low numbers of scrubber installation.