{"id":4705,"date":"2017-11-16T13:04:16","date_gmt":"2017-11-16T21:04:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/probable-carton.flywheelsites.com\/?p=4705"},"modified":"2024-02-08T13:28:53","modified_gmt":"2024-02-08T21:28:53","slug":"imo-2020-part-3-refiners-perspective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stillwaterassociates.com\/imo-2020-part-3-refiners-perspective\/","title":{"rendered":"IMO 2020 Part 3: \u00a0Refiners\u2019 Perspective"},"content":{"rendered":"

November 16, 2017
\nby Ralph Grimmer<\/a>, James Ahrens<\/a>, and Leigh Noda<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving forward with a marked reduction from 3.5% to 0.5% in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) on January 1, 2020. In our October newsletter, Stillwater provided Part 2 of our series on this \u201cIMO 2020 Rule\u201d<\/a>, focusing on the shipowners\u2019 perspective. In this month\u2019s newsletter, we will focus on the refiners\u2019 perspective on this impending change, with particular emphasis on the impact of the IMO 2020 Rule when it is implemented in 2020.<\/p>\n

Implementation of the IMO 2020 Rule requires that marine vessels consume marine fuels with a maximum sulfur content of 0.5 wt. % in areas outside of Emission Control Areas (ECAs), unless onboard stack gas scrubbers have been installed. Stillwater expects that less than 15% of marine vessels will have installed onboard scrubbers when the IMO 2020 Rule takes effect, and that non-traditional fuels such as LNG and methanol will constitute a very small percentage of vessel fuel in 2020. IMO 2020 will cause a dramatic shift in the demand of marine fuels used globally from high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) to 0.5% sulfur marine fuel. This demand shift will have a dramatic impact on global refining.\u00a0 There are several observations that should shape any refiner\u2019s consideration of this rule:<\/p>\n

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  1. Refineries currently producing HSFO will be the most threatened by this rule.<\/li>\n
  2. Refineries that currently produce minimal HSFO due to vacuum resid processing (e.g. coking, hydrocracking) will likely see IMO 2020 as an opportunity rather than a threat.<\/li>\n
  3. Time is the enemy of refineries currently producing HSFO. Unless refinery modifications to reduce HSFO production are already well underway, those modifications will not be onstream until well after 2020.<\/li>\n
  4. Key price differentials for refiners will likely change markedly in 2020, producing significant changes in processing strategy for many refiners:\n