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Maersk, a giant company in the maritime transport sector, will receive its first methanol-powered ship this week, with a focus on sustainability.
A new cargo ship, which was ordered by Maersk two years ago, sets sail this week, being the first to operate with ecological methanol. This fuel is developed using methane captured from food waste in landfills.
Maersk seeks to buy only vessels that can use green fuels
Maersk, one of the world's largest shipping companies, ordered the methanol-powered ship two years ago as part of its commitment to buy only new ships that can run on green fuels. As the vessel makes its maiden voyage from South Korea to Denmark, Maersk already has another 25 methanol-powered ships on order and is also starting to modify older ships to use the same fuel. By the end of this decade, Maersk, which operates more than 700 ships and has 300 of them, plans to transport a quarter of its maritime cargo using environmentally friendly fuels. Green methanol, which can be generated using gas from plant sources such as food waste, or from renewable electricity, can reduce a ship's emissions by 65 to 70 percent.
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Globally, the maritime sector is responsible for emitting around one billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year, about the same as the airline sector. As it is not possible to eliminate emissions completely, green methanol is not a perfect solution. Other technologies are already being developed that focus on reducing emissions on ships, including ammonia, electrification and liquid hydrogen and others. However, as the sector is a major polluter and following the right path to be within the Paris climate targets requires immediate action, Maersk chose to move forward with investments in green methanol because it saw great feasibility.
Maersk aims to achieve neutrality by 2040
According to Morten Bo Christiansen, head of Maersk's decarbonization lead, there is a great fear of making the wrong bet or making a mistake in some way, and of course, in an ideal world, you could spend a decade figuring out all the pros and cons of the carbon-powered vessel. methanol and also what is ideal. However, it is necessary to resolve this issue now. The industry plans to reach net zero by 2050, however Maersk plans to achieve it a decade earlier.
Christiansen says that three years ago, not a single ship of this type was ordered. Now 5 other carriers are also buying, with 120 ships already underway. The next challenge for the methanol-powered ship is to expand fuel production and reduce the cost, which is currently two or even three times more expensive than common fuel. Even so, according to him, if the extra cost decreases, the impact may be relatively small. For a pair of sneakers that cross the ocean, for example, switching to eco-fuel could mean paying 5 cents more.
Maersk also plans to act in the conversion of ships
The company has plans to convert one of its ships to operate on methanol. The engine retrofit to biofuel is scheduled to take place in mid-2024, with a focus on demonstrating the feasibility of retrofitting existing vessels rather than creating new vessels.
Maersk closed an agreement with Man Energy Solutions to convert the vessel's engine. MAN Es specializes in marine propulsion systems and will bring its expertise to adapt the ship's engine to run on green methanol biofuel.
