Maersk signs MoU to set up Asia’s first e-methanol plant
A.P. Moller - Maersk has partnered with five other companies to explore whether to set up an e-methanol plant in Singapore.
PHOTO: Maersk aims to operate 12 methanol-fuelled vessels by 2024. Maersk
The envisioned plant would have a minimum production capacity of 50,000 mt/year and target demand from the shipping industry. Results from a feasibility study is due by the end of the year will determine whether they will go through with it.
Biogenic carbon dioxide will be captured and converted into e-methanol using renewable energy. The companies say this can cut greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from ships significantly.
They say the project is an important step towards exploring alternative marine fuels with carbon reduction potential to meet the International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) 2030 and 2050 carbon intensity and GHG reduction targets.
Maersk's partners on the project are Thai petroleum exploration firm PTT Exploration and Production, French industrial gas firm Air Liquide, Singaporean electricity producer YTL PowerSeraya, Singaporean terminal and storage operator Oiltanking Asia Pacific and Singaporean bunker supplier Kenoil Marine Services.
Maersk has been entering into similar partnerships in other regions to develop green fuel production. Last month, it announced agreements with six methanol suppliers to source at least 730,000 mt/year by the end of 2025, which it claims is sufficient to power 12 container vessels that it currently has on order.
