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Slowly but surely, science seems to be advancing toward the production of biofuel that does not take away agricultural land from the world's food supply, according to leading vessel operator A.P. Moller - Maersk. The company says that when this fuel type is ready, it will also be well placed following the work that it has carried out so far into researching biofuels.

Five Maersk business units are already carrying out tests on a large container vessel with the ultimate aim of cutting CO2 emissions and diversifying the fuel supply.

The company is currently testing how the fuel tanks and engines of Maersk Kalmar react to biodiesel. The test is being carried out with biodiesel using crops grown in temperate regions, or reused oils. In the first phase, the scope is a fuel blend with 5-7 % biodiesel.

The partners in the Biodiesel Project are Maersk Line, Maersk Tankers, Maersk Supply Service, Maersk Drilling, Maersk Ship Management, Lloyd's Register - Strategic Research Group, and a consortium of Dutch subcontractors. The project is supported by the Dutch government.

Action could be relevant sooner than expected. Recently, several biotech companies have reported positive leaps in the creation of enzymes, which act as catalysts when biomass, such as agricultural waste, is converted into fuel.

Jacob Sterling of the Maersk Line sustainability team considers the reports encouraging.

"It's good news. Maersk Line will probably never sail on bioethanol, but lignin is a residual from producing bioethanol, and this may be a real option for us. Lignin is essentially a precursor for oil and coal, so it is very similar to the fuel we are using today - just with far less sulphur and CO2 emissions," he says.

Taking the lead on biofuel could be a strategic investment, according to Lasse Kragh Andersen, senior specialist at Maersk Maritime Technology.

"At Maersk Maritime Technology we see the development of the technology behind shipping and biofuel as a big and exciting business opportunity," Andersen says.

Biofuel is one way to diversify the fuel supply as fossil fuels are likely to become more scarce and higher in price in the decades to come.

"To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to test biodiesel in a large container vessel. We want to be ready when sustainable biofuels become available in large volumes," says Sterling.

There are caveats, though.

"It is crucial that future biofuels for shipping are sustainable - their CO2 emissions must be far less than conventional fuels, and the production should be based on biomass that can be produced without negative impacts on food production and biodiversity," Sterling said.

Maersk Line consumed more than 9 million tonnes of bunker fuel in 2009. The company has set a voluntary target to reduce CO2 emissions from its container vessels by 20 percent per container moved in the period 2007-2017. Biofuel is expected to be part of the solution.