Port Technology — 2023-06-09
Land transportation
A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk), in collaboration with its partners Renfe and Cepsa, will conduct the first fuel test in Spain using second-generation bio-fuels in the railway sector.
The partners will use renewable diesel fuel on the non-electrified section between Algeciras and Cordoba and renewable electricity on the route from there to the capital.
The project is scheduled to begin in early July 2023 and will last for three months.
The Spanish company Cepsa will supply 160 tonnes of second-generation bio-fuel, produced at its La Rábida Energy Park (Huelva) from used cooking oils, to cover a total of five weekly roundtrips.
Renewable diesel will replace conventional diesel in the Renfe locomotives that Maersk uses to transport its customers’ goods from Algeciras to Cordoba.
In Cordoba, they will continue the route to Madrid on electric trains powered by renewable energy.
The renewable diesel will reportedly cover almost 40,000 kilometres and avoid the emission of more than 600 tonnes of greenhouse gases (GHG).
The pilot test will deliver technical, environmental and economic data to analyse the feasibility of using fuels with very low GHG emissions as an alternative to conventional diesel in rail transport on non-electrified lines.
In June 2023, Maersk had resumed booking acceptance onto its 25Z service – Kisiwa Express operating between Mombasa in Kenya and Zanzibar.