a boat in a marina

General

2 minute read

"Hornblower’s goal is to operate sustainably, responsibly, and with the environment in mind, and Neste has been a great partner in that."

Hornblower

  • Consume an average of 20,000 gallons of Renewable Diesel a month

  • 1.7 million people take an Alcatraz Cruise each year

  • Hybrid fleets have resulted in a decrease of 235,000 gallons of diesel consumption a year

How renewable diesel is helping Hornblower achieve its sustainability goals

As the sole concessionaire for passenger service city cruises between San Francisco, California, and Alcatraz Island for decades, Hornblower is in service year-round. With a commitment to environmental sustainability, Hornblower took a major step by switching to Neste MY Renewable Diesel to continue meeting its sustainability goals and reduce its fuel consumption for the long-term benefit of the local environment.

3 challenges faced by Hornblower

  1. Reduce fuel consumption to achieve sustainability goals

  2. Reduce visible and unsightly ship emissions

  3. Seamless replacement transition that meets company standards

"When it comes to new technologies, Neste has always lived up to their promises."

Trevor Hendron, Director of Engineering

Solution

As soon as it became available in the San Francisco Bay Area, Hornblower switched its Alcatraz Island city cruises to Neste MY Renewable Diesel after some initial testing and a short transition period. Because renewable diesel is a drop-in replacement, Hornblower’s array of hybrid fleets reduced its fuel consumption by 75% or 235,000 gallons of diesel consumption annually, which is the equivalent of taking 450 cars off the road or planting 718 trees a year.

What were some of the immediate effects noticed after switching to renewable diesel?

“It was important that when we pulled away from the dock, there wasn’t a big cloud of smoke running. Neste MY Renewable Diesel helps us provide that.” - Trevor Hendron, Director of Engineering.

What impact does this have for the future?

“The improvements we’ve made here in moving the bar with our partners has forever changed the industry standard - other companies can no longer say, ‘Well, I don’t think you can do that,’ because we did it, and we’re happy to show you how.” - Trevor Hendron, Director of Engineering