Recently, our team received urgent communication from one of our regular clients.
The client would be operating in Brazilian maritime waters and required our expertise securing product on the global market. The newly commissioned bulk carrier would soon be berthing at Paranagua – one of the largest shipping ports in Brazil, and it needed copious amounts of AUS40. Fluechem’s global reach had recently expanded within the area and our team were quick to identify a cost-saving solution for our client. One that still met the high-quality standards we set with our services.
Aqueous Urea Solution is specifically used for NOx reduction within various global sectors. Strong concentrations typically around 40% are used to reduce clogging in Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) converters found on most vessels. Fluechem supplies AUS40 that is graded under ISO 18611 which governs the quality of product to ensure reliable and stable operation within the SCR technology.
Nitrogen Oxide emissions is one of the major contributions to GHG’s and with the vessel expected to be cruising around the east coast of Brazil, AUS40 would be needed to keep the vessel compliant. Our client was counting on us to deliver the product, without any delays, while their vessel was berthed for only short window.
Although the team at Fluechem have had experience exceeding expectations… the true challenge came much later in the operation. Harsh climate conditions materialised above local services and threatened transport across the region.
Sao Paulo, a city in Brazil 450 miles from the Port of Paranagua, experienced dangerous levels of rainfall only 2 weeks prior to our operation and sadly it resulted in loss of life.
On the day of mobilisation, we received reports of heavy rain with major roads closing with the risk of collapse. Safety of the ground crew was of the utmost concern, so our Logistics team needed to restructure their approach to respect the conditions we were facing.
Flooding and long diversions slowed progress which resulted in delays with pre-set delivery times. All local services were relying on ferry boats to transport vehicles to city networks.
Although we could not predict the severity of the weather, our combined years of experience in the field had positioned us with enough time and knowledge to safely navigate and overcome the obstacles without jeopardising our schedule.
While the Logistics team were monitoring the situation thoroughly, we were in close contact with our client. Reassuring them that our skills in the industry would surpass other services and Fluechem is a name they could trust. Once our supply arrived at the port, we were escorted through with minimum interruption and successfully transferred the product straight into the vessel’s storage tanks.
“Despite all the challenges, we pulled together to deliver a critical tanker load of AUS40,” says Fluechem CEO Niall Roberts. “Brazil is becoming one of our key growth areas. Above all the safety of our team and the protection of the environment are paramount to us. I’m proud that the team have yet again overcome the challenges and completed a critical AUS40 delivery successfully. Fluechem remains committed to delivering solutions that meet the highest standards of safety, environmental responsibility and customer satisfaction.”
