Where are we now?
For one, sustainable marine fuels have earned a much more significant moniker“ Strategic Maritime Fuels,” which still maintains its SMF initials. Right now? SMF costs are much higher than fossil fuels; there’ s very little if any infrastructure; hydrogen fuel cells come with their own set of challenges; and it’ s difficult to find places that carry SMF. But this is a huge initiative, and as the joke goes: How does one eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
According to a recent email from Wasil following the Trump executive order Restoring America’ s Maritime Dominance( April 2025), which calls for an expanded Maritime Action Plan, the Department of Energy( DOE) assembled a leadership task force to further explore and make recommendations for future maritime fuels.“ The DOE has clearly positioned Recreational Marine as an important sector, which historically was not considered part of maritime activities,” Wasil wrote.
From a state level, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’ s( MEDC) Office of Future Mobility and Electrification( OFME), for example, has been working on its own Maritime Action Plan led by the University of Michigan and supported by NMMA. The Michigan Maritime Action Plan is slated to be rolled out by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in October 2025.
In July 2024, NMMA, Suzuki Marine, Hyperfuels, and LyondellBasell launched a pilot program at St. Andrews Marina in Panama City, Florida, to sell Ideal EMP( also called Purfuel), a gasoline with 42 percent renewable content. Nearly 60,000 gallons of Ideal EMP was sold at St. Andrews between July 2024 through January 2025.
This past June, Viking Yachts partnered with Mack Boring Parts & Co( the U. S. distributor for Scania marine diesel engines) to demonstrate how SMF performs on a 48-foot Viking Convertible powered by Scania 1150-hp DI16-liter V8s.
The RD99 fuel is produced with waste oils, fats, and used cooking grease, which is refined into a crystal-clear diesel fuel that meets ASTM standards. " Renewable diesel is simply a higher quality, highly refined fuel that can be used in any diesel recreational marine engine," Wasil said.“ It ' s an outstanding fuel that reduces emissions, particulate matter, and is better for the environment.”
According to their reports, the boat performed without loss of power while the fuel burned the same as diesel. RD99 offers a drop-in replacement, without the need for engine or systems modifications, and may potentially reduce lifecycle GHG emissions by as much as 90 percent.
Many major players in the industry, from Brunswick to Yamaha, continue to look into ways to reduce
Source: Yamaha U. S. Marine / yamahaoutboards. com / sustainability
Source: Brunswick Corporation
the industry’ s overall carbon footprint. Current projections, supported by the Department of Energy, call for 10 percent SMF marine gasoline consumption: 15 percent new hybridelectric, battery electric, or hydrogen fuel cell-powered recreational boat sales; and significant improvement and development of fast-charging or hydrogen-refueling infrastructure across 10 boating regions, all by 2030.
www. boatingindustry. com july / august 2025
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