ITOCHU and GoodFuels sign strategic partnership deal

ITOCHU is actively engaged in the wholesale, distribution, and bunkering of petroleum products in both Singapore and Japan, while GoodFuels specializes in the sourcing, development, production, and delivery of sustainable marine biofuels with a presence in the Netherlands and Singapore.

This new strategic partnership will enable the two companies to build the market and the supply chain necessary for the wider adoption of marine biofuel.

As GoodFuels looks to further scale up its presence in Asia-Pacific and respond to a growing demand for sustainable marine biofuels in the region, we knew that we had to find partners whose competencies and values match our own mission to bring about a better world, said Dirk Kronemeijer, CEO of the GoodNRG Group.

This long-term partnership, which was signed on May 12, 2022, will combine ITOCHU’s mature trading and supply operations and develop a client base with GoodFuels’ deep expertise in sustainable biofuels, extensive client and sourcing portfolio and strong sustainable impact brand.

This new, long-term partnership agreement with ITOCHU will help us to fulfill our joined ambitions and enable more shipowners in Singapore and Japan to immediately accelerate their decarbonization efforts via our advanced marine biofuels, said Dirk Kronemeijer.

Under the partnership, ITOCHU will be responsible for logistics, blending and distribution, whilst GoodFuels will mainly be responsible for sourcing, production, technical expertise and brand marketing.

Moreover, ITOCHU’s expertise in the marine fuel market and experience with other low-carbon marine fuel solutions will be invaluable as we look to enable two of the world’s most important maritime nations to deploy our advanced biofuels and reduce carbon emissions from shipping, Dirk Kronemeijer said.

Both parties will share responsibilities in sales and marketing and work jointly towards scaling capabilities in production and sourcing.

Partnering with GoodFuels is a significant step forward in meeting our customers’ needs for low-carbon fuels. We will steadily respond to the changing environment from a customer-oriented perspective by working with GoodFuels to build an integrated supply chain for sustainable marine biofuels, said Ted Tanaka, Managing Director of ITOCHU Petroleum Singapore, the energy trading arm of ITOCHU.

ITOCHU and GoodFuels will initially focus on the supply of sustainable marine biofuels to all Singaporean territorial waters, waterways, and harbors, as well as prospective customers transiting the Strait of Malacca.

Then, in the second phase of the partnership, the companies plan to scale up deliveries to the wider Asia-Pacific region, including Japan.

Now, the next step begins. Today, we call on the industry, our clients, and partners to join us in making the market for low carbon marine fuels in Asia, above and beyond the pace of regulation. At the same time, we will continue to work with governments and port authorities in the region to support them as they scale up measures that lay the pathway for truly sustainable low carbon fuels, said Dirk Kronemeijer.

According to GoodFuels, its sustainable marine biofuels deliver an 80-90 percent well-to-exhaust reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions for oceangoing vessels.

They require no technical changes to the tanks or engines and are produced from independently certified renewable feedstocks that cannot be used for any higher quality application or recycling.

We are excited to begin working together with ITOCHU to scale the uptake of our sustainable marine biofuel in Singapore, Japan, and the Asia-Pacific. This partnership will give us the distribution and sourcing power we need to service both our loyal existing and new local client base in the best possible way across Asia, ended Jing Xieng Han, General Manager GoodFuels Asia Pacific and manager of the partnership.