Shipping companies race to use green fuel to meet stricter rules

A rendering of the world’s first container vessel fueled by methanol [Photo provided by AP Moller-Maersk A/S]

Global shipping companies are looking at green fuel such as methanol, ammonia and hydrogen to power vessels as the International Maritime Organization set a target to cut emissions by 50 percent by 2050 through stricter regulations.

Most vessels in currently operation run by bunker fuels that are based on fossil fuel and are in urgent need of future fuels that may be a game changer in the industry as new regulations by the International Maritime Organization are set to come into effect this year to curb greenhouse gas emissions by rating carbon intensity.

According to industry sources on Monday, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. will deliver next month the world’s first container vessel fueled by methanol, a 2,100 TEU container ship, to AP Moller-Maersk A/S.

The world’s second-largest shipping company first ordered a methanol-powered vessel from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in 2021 and has ordered 18 more such vessels since, the largest number of vessels of that kind. Methanol is gaining ground as an eco-friendly vessel fuel after liquefied natural gas as, compared to conventional fuels like bunker fuel, it can reduce sulfur oxides by 99 percent, nitrogen oxides by 80 percent and greenhouse gases by up to 25 percent. The world’s third-largest shipping company, CMA CGM SA also ordered 18 methanol-fueled ships, gambling it all on methanol as the next generation vessel fuel.

It is yet too early to bet, however, on methanol as the dominant future marine fuel, as it requires fuel tanks 2.2 times larger than those for bunker fuel due to its low energy density.

Korea’s biggest shipping company, HMM Co., is weighing various green options among marine bio fuel oil, methanol and ammonia, conducting simultaneous research and development into those various fuel options. As part of such efforts, the world’s No. 8 shipping company is seeking joint research with shipyards and refineries, signing a series of memorandums of understanding with GS Caltex Corp., Lotte Fine Chemical Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. last month.

Especially in partnership with GS Caltex, the shipping company is developing bio marine fuel oil, made by mixing waste material-based biodiesel and bunker fuel in a ratio of 3:7. This green fuel is supposed to be able to reduce more than 80 percent of greenhouse gas emissions compared with fossil fuels, enabling it to meet the IMO’s carbon reduction standards without revamping existing ship engines. In partnership with Lotte Fine Chemical, which has the largest ammonia storage facility in Korea, HMM is developing another type of marine fuel oil based on ammonia and methanol.