Decarbonization: Santos launches ethanol refueling for ships

Pioneering operation puts the country on the path to lower-carbon fuels and reinforces the port’s role as an energy hub

The Port of Santos (SP), the country’s largest, carried out the first ethanol refueling of a container ship in Brazilian territory. This milestone, which took place on Sunday (12), places Brazil on the path toward fuels with a lower carbon footprint and solidifies the nation’s main port as a hub for this type of operation, reinforcing strategies focused on new energy sources.

The operation was carried out on the container ship *CMA CGM Iron*, which has a capacity of 13,000 TEUs. The vessel is equipped with a tri-fuel engine certified to run on ethanol, methanol, and diesel. After leaving Santos, the ship will head to the Port of Paranaguá and subsequently to Sri Lanka.

In addition to CMA CGM, the initiative involved partnerships with Copersucar, Bunker One, Santos Brasil, Ageo Terminais, and Everllence. Copersucar supplied the sugarcane-based ethanol; Ageo was responsible for storage; and Bunker One handled the fuel transfer directly to the ship.

According to the Head of Operations for Bunker One Group in Latin America, 500 tons of fuel—equivalent to approximately 635 cubic meters—were supplied at an average flow rate of 150 m³ per hour.

“The operational procedures were designed collaboratively. It is a plan approved by the Navy and the Port Authority, which enabled the operation to be carried out with complete safety, without impacting the ship’s schedule. We know that vessels of this size have tight windows in ports, and we didn’t want to interfere with operations,” he stated.

Copersucar President Tomás Manzano highlighted that the operation at the Port of Santos paves the way for new decarbonization projects. “Brazilian ethanol is a ready-to-use solution that offers a significant reduction in carbon intensity,” he said. The supply process required an integrated logistics operation, involving the transport of ethanol to the Port of Santos, its storage in dedicated facilities, and its transfer to the vessel via a specialized barge. The entire process adhered to international safety standards and was supported by authorities responsible for regulatory and operational aspects.

“This is an initiative that has been in development for about two years, involving a partnership among various stakeholders in the supply chain to make this logistics operation feasible,” he concluded.