Danish giant A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) has sealed a deal with Norwegian energy major Equinor for the supply of green methanol for its methanol-enabled feeder vessel during its initial months of operation from September 2023 and into the first half of 2024.
The deal with Maersk ensures green methanol supply for the ship from its entry into operation on a loop from Northern Europe into the Baltic Sea after the name giving ceremony later this month in Copenhagen.
The green methanol will be bunkered in Rotterdam.
Equinor is an established player in the European methanol market through its production plant at Tjeldbergodden, “with ambitions to be a key provider of green methanol in the marine fuel segment,” according to Alex Grant, senior vice president for the liquid commodity segment at Equinor.
Long term, the feeder vessel will be fueled by e-methanol from a plant in Southern Denmark, operated by European Energy, which is expected to come on-stream in the first half of 2024.
The Danish giant Maersk has 24 additional methanol vessels on order for delivery between 2024 and 2027 and has a policy to only order new, owned vessels that comes with a green fuel option.
The 2,100 teu (twenty-foot-equivalent) feeder vessel is an important step toward the long-term objective of gradually renewing the entire Maersk fleet to operate solely on green fuels.
Maersk defines ’green fuels’ as fuels with low to very low GHG emissions over their life cycle compared to fossil fuels.
By ‘low’ Maersk refers to fuels with 65-80% life cycle GHG reductions compared to fossil fuels. ‘Very low’ refers to fuels with 80-95% life cycle GHG reductions compared to fossil fuels.
The biomethanol is produced from biogas from manure. The biogas is upgraded to biomethane and injected into the existing gas grid and the methanol is produced from the biomethane in the grid on a mass-balance basis. The existing European biogas certificate system is used to trace the attributes of the biomethane to the biomethanol and safeguard against double-claims. This way, green methanol can be produced in existing facilities using existing infrastructure and plants enabling a quick route to market.
As Equinor is entering this business area, its critical to get energy majors to the table and start supplying future fuels at scale, said characteristically Rabab Boulos, chief infrastructure officer at Maersk.
“This is the form of engagement we need to continue accelerating the pioneering journey towards a green fuel economy for global shipping. With more than 100 methanol enabled vessels on order across the industry, the demand for green fuel production is rising and will continue to do so in the years to come,” noted Boulos.
