Lloyd’s Register’s Fuel Oil Bunker Analysis & Advisory Service (FOBAS) Fuel Quality Report for H2 2025 makes for uncomfortable reading. Fuel quality failures were up in both frequency and severity across the second half of 2025 and the problems weren’t limited to minor or obscure ports. Singapore, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Algeciras, Hong Kong. The busy hubs you might assume are safe bets.
So what should you actually do with this information?
One of the report’s more striking observations is the persistent gap between vessel manifold samples and joint supplier analysis results. The same delivery of fuel can look very different depending on who’s testing it and when.
The report recommends taking additional tank samples whenever results diverge significantly, because knowing what you actually have on board is the only way to manage it properly.
Onboard testing isn’t a duplication of effort. It’s your independent check.
The report recorded multiple MGO flash point results well below the SOLAS minimum of 60°C, with some as low as 47°C. In several cases, all the other parameters looked fine. You’d have had no indication without proper testing.
There’s also evidence of land-grade diesel entering the marine fuel pool at smaller ports, where bunkering oversight tends to be lighter. If you’re calling at non-major hubs, don’t assume the fuel meets marine requirements.
These three drove the majority of fuel quality failures in H2 2025, and the numbers were frankly shocking in places.
Singapore returned cat fine levels of up to 580 mg/kg in December, nearly 40 times the recommended limit of 15 mg/kg at engine entry, and far beyond what onboard treatment can realistically address. Rotterdam recorded water content more than 29 times the ISO 8217 limit. Multiple ports produced sediment results way beyond acceptable levels.
Water is the one that tends to snowball. Left unchecked, it creates the ideal environment for diesel bug, which then causes filter blockages, corrosion, and eventually engine damage.
Contamination in a fuel system doesn’t stay contained. Water ingress creates the perfect conditions for diesel bug to take hold.
Cat fines act like grinding paste on engine components, piston rings, cylinder liners, fuel injectors. Sediment builds up in tanks and clogs filters.
Left unchecked, you’re looking at:
The costs, in parts, repairs, and lost operational time, can be significant.
Good fuel management comes down to three things: test regularly so you know what you’ve got, treat proactively so problems don’t escalate, and prevent contamination from taking hold in the first place. Star International supplies a range of products designed to support exactly that kind of routine.
Our Fuelstat Testing Kit detects bacteria, fungi, yeasts, and diesel bug before they have a chance to cause filter blockages, injector damage, and corrosion. No lab or specialist training are needed, and results are delivered in 15-30 minutes, with automatic reporting via a free app and cloud storage that gives you a compliance-ready audit trail.
Meanwhile, the XRF Fuel Sulphur Content Tester gives your crew the means to verify sulphur content and flash point compliance on board, particularly useful when bunkering outside major hubs.
On the treatment and prevention side, the Star Mariner range of marine fuel additives is designed to keep fuel stable, clean, and dependable across different operating patterns, not just when something’s already gone wrong.
Star Mariner Neptune also removes water from fuel, providing an additional option when water contamination needs tackling directly.
Star Mariner Eliminator helps prevent microbial contamination from getting a foothold in the first place.
Star Mariner MGO 31-A5 Fuel Stabiliser maintains fuel quality and stability during storage, helping prevent the degradation that leads to sediment formation and filter issues over time.
And Star Mariner MGO Antigel improves cold flow performance in low temperatures (particularly relevant given the FOBAS report’s findings on elevated Cold Filter Plugging Point values at northern European ports during winter).
Aquafighter Fuel Tank Water Absorbers works directly in the tank to remove both free and emulsified water, keeping content below 65ppm and reducing filter replacements by around 60%.
Used together as part of a regular fuel management routine, these products give operators a practical way to stay on the front foot, rather than waiting for a fuel problem to become an engine problem.
The FOBAS report’s outlook isn’t particularly comforting. More regulatory change, more fuel diversity, more biofuel blending, and the early emergence of alternative fuels are all set to add complexity to an already tricky bunker market. The report’s consistent message: test regularly, vet your suppliers carefully, and don’t wait for problems to find you.
Get in touch to find out how to keep your fuel – and engine – in the best possible condition.
