Green methanol provide chain in motion: First of its form 2,100 TEU field ship was bunkered with 1,000 tonnes of bio-methanol in Ulsan. [Image: OTK]
When LNG first began gaining traction as a marine gas, there was plenty of speak about chickens in eggs round problems with provide, demand an infrastructure. With methanol, it looks as if the hens have already began laying. In an indication of how the inexperienced methanol provide chain is beginning to come collectively, Rose Cay Maritime LLC, the Houston-headquartered Jones Act ATB specialist that operates a fleet of former Bouchard Transportation vessels, has reached an settlement with Arlington, Va., headquartered inexperienced methanol producer Carbon Sink LLC.
The settlement outlines a plan for rising inexperienced gas manufacturing, transportation, bunkering and storage particularly tailor-made for the delivery sector. Carbon Sink, which is creating large-scale inexperienced methanol manufacturing services throughout the U.S., says that Rose Cay Maritime’s capabilities will present it with a “robust platform to seamlessly link its green methanol projects to customers by offering end-to-end logistic solutions.”
Two take-aways from this settlement would appear to be that quantity manufacturing of inexperienced methanol is beginning to happen and, considerably, delivering it to ships won’t require specialised bunkering vessels filled with costly cryogenic techniques.
Carbon Sink says that, thus far, greater than 220 methanol-capable vessels are working or beneath development, representing an annual world demand exceeding 6 million metric tons of inexperienced methanol. It notes that, final November, it signed a letter of intent with world delivery big A.P. Moller-Maersk to ship 100,000 tonnes of inexperienced methanol yearly from its debut plant. The plant is slated to begin manufacturing in 2027 and Maersk is predicted to buy the complete quantity of gas produced, with choices for future Carbon Sink services.
Maersk, in fact, is the corporate that has finished most to leap begin the development to inexperienced methanol fueling with its plans to construct a fleet of vessels burning the gas.
The first of these vessels has now been delivered and final month we reported that Amsterdam-headquartered OCI Global (Euronext: OCI) can be fueling its maiden voyage.
“The green methanol market is still in its infancy and frankly we had not expected to be able to secure a maiden voyage on green methanol for this vessel,” stated Morten Bo Christiansen, head of vitality transition at A.P. Moller – Maersk. “So, we are very proud to have achieved this significant milestone. We expect a diverse green fuel mix for the future, with green bio-methanol from biomass waste being available now.”
MILESTONE BUNKERING IN ULSAN
In an indication of the inexperienced methanol; provide chain in motion, on July 16, Maesk’s first-of-its form 2,100 TEU newbuild was bunkered in Ulsan with 1,000 tonnes of the OCI Global bio-methanol by Odfjell Terminals Korea (OTK).
“We congratulate Maersk on this important milestone and are proud to be the first terminal to successfully supply green methanol bunkering to this unique vessel,” stated OTK’s chief industrial officer, Joseph Kim. “Over the past months, business reviews and technical efforts have been conducted on safe and successful methanol bunker supply models. We expect these results to be the cornerstone of the methanol bunkering business moving forward.”
The vessel is the primary of 19 methanol dual-fuel engined ships ordered by Maersk. The operational experiences on its 21,500 kilometer voyage from South Korea to Denmark – greater than midway across the globe – shall be adopted with world curiosity.
“Maersk is excited to collaborate with Ulsan Port on the maiden voyage of the world’s first container vessel sailing on green methanol. This journey is an important step in our efforts to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, as it will allow us to gain the necessary operational experience with the new engines and fuel ahead of the arrival of our larger methanol-enabled vessels in the coming years,” stated Maersk’s Christiansen.
