Bunker supplier Aegean said Wednesday it is able to supply ultra-low sulfur fuel oil in all ports in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp bunkering hub with immediate effect.

The company did not reveal which producer will make the product.

“We are responding to increased levels of demand for ULSFO from our clients in the region,” Aegean NWE regional manager Tony Vertommen said in a press release.

The fuel will also be available at Zeebrugge, the company said. Marine fuel sulfur limits for ships in the Baltic, the North Sea and the English Channel were cut to 0.1% from 1% from the start of 2015, forcing most operators there to switch from burning fuel oil to more expensive marine gasoil. Several producers developed ULSFO products as cheaper alternatives to MGO that would still comply with the new 0.1% sulfur limit.

The announcement comes as the bunker industry prepares for 2020, when ships will no longer be allowed to burn fuel with a sulfur content of more than 0.5%.

Some market participants say they expect the current most popular fuel, with a sulfur content of 3.5%, will still have a role, in ships equipped with scrubbers.

However, market players widely predict increase use of low sulfur blended fuel oil.

Ultra low sulfur fuel oil will be the main method of managing the marine fuel sulfur limit, respondents said when polled by S&P Global Platts during International Petroleum Week.

Of these, 34.5% chose low sulfur blended fuel oil. The second most popular option was low sulfur distillate, which 23.4% of respondents chose.

Just 14.9% said high sulfur fuel oil and scrubbers would be the main method.

Aegean has a fleet of 16 island, estuary and deep sea-going bunker barges and is the largest independent physical supplier in the ports of the ARA.

Source: Platts