Barge operators question TNO findings on higher FAME biofuel blends
Inland shipping companies say a practical trial behind a new report on higher-blend biofuel may not reflect real operating conditions, a claim the research institute rejects.
A new report from Dutch research organisation TNO examining a practical trial of higher FAME biofuel blends in inland shipping has done little to settle debate over the fuel's suitability for the sector. Rather than closing the discussion, the findings have reopened questions among barge operators about whether the conditions tested truly reflect how vessels operate on European inland waterways day to day.
Skippers and inland shipping companies have responded critically to the report, arguing that the trial's setup may not be representative of the range of engines, operating patterns and cargo types found across the barge fleet. Their concern centres on whether conclusions drawn from a limited practical test can be safely generalised to the wider inland fleet before higher FAME blends are more broadly adopted or mandated.
TNO has pushed back on that characterisation, saying the criticism does not do justice to how the study was designed or to the carefully qualified language used throughout the report. The institute maintains that its conclusions were deliberately nuanced rather than definitive, and that its findings were never intended to be read as a blanket endorsement or rejection of higher-blend biofuel for every type of inland vessel.
The disagreement reflects the broader tension facing inland shipping as it works toward lower-carbon fuels under mounting regulatory and commercial pressure. Biodiesel blends such as FAME are among the more readily available transitional options for barge operators, but questions over engine compatibility, fuel stability and long-term maintenance costs continue to shape how quickly the sector is willing to move beyond conventional diesel.
With the report now public, the debate is likely to continue as operators, engine manufacturers and regulators weigh how much confidence to place in the trial's results. For an industry under pressure to decarbonise while keeping ageing engines running reliably, resolving the disagreement over what the data actually shows will matter as much as the fuel-blend question itself.
