The Week in Alt Fuels: Array of future fuels

Shipping industry experts have forecast that shipping is headed towards a mixed fuel future.

PHOTO: Concept image of an ammonia-fuelled ammonia carrier. Nippon Yusen Kaisha

Future fuels will include liquefied natural gas (LNG), bio- and e-methane, ammonia, methanol and hydrogen, experts suggest.

Lloyd's Register (LR) predicts that shipping's green future will be made up of a combination of hydrogen-based and biofuels. Green ammonia will be the “most highly adopted maritime fuel in the long-term,” it argues. DNV also envisages hydrogen-based fuels like ammonia to overtake biofuels as the preferred general fuel group by 2050.

LNG bunker supplier Titan delivered 2,200 mt of liquid biomethane (LBM) to a Hapag-Lloyd container ship in the Port of Rotterdam. LBM can function as a drop-in fuel in LNG, which means that vessels capable of running on LNG will not need modifications to run on pure LBM or LBM-LNG blends. “At Titan, while we’re fuel agnostic, we recognize the LNG pathway via LBM and renewable e-methane as a practical, sustainable and cost-effective route to net-zero shipping emissions and towards regulatory compliance for shipowners and operators,” said Caspar Gooren, director of renewable fuels at Titan Clean Fuels.

Japanese shipping major Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) is exploring several green fuel alternatives. It has allocated a total investment of 430 billion yen ($2.8 billion) towards building 31 LNG-fuelled vessels, three ammonia-fuelled ships, eight LPG-fuelled vessels and four methanol-fuelled ships by 2030. It plans to issue green bonds totalling 100 billion yen ($653 million) to finance the ammonia-fuelled vessels and 200 billion yen ($1.3 billion) for the LNG-fuelled vessels.

Singapore-based shipping firm X-Press Feeders has partnered with six northern European ports to introduce feeder services using container vessels powered by green methanol. The ports include Antwerp-Bruges, Tallinn, Helsinki, HaminaKotka, Riga and Klaipeda. The green shipping corridors are set to launch in the third quarter of this year. X-press Feeders has 14 dual-fuel vessels on order, which are fitted with engines capable of operating on conventional fuel and methanol.

Indian renewable energy firm ACME plans to transport green hydrogen from its plant in Oman to Europe using liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) technology. The technology, developed by Germany-based Hydrogenious LOHC Technologies, uses thermal oil benzyl toluene as a LOHC. Benzyl toluene can be stored and transported at ambient temperatures and pressure, just like conventional fuels. It can also be used multiple times to absorb and release hydrogen as needed. There is no hydrogen boil-off, even over long distances and periods of time.

Norwegian renewable tech firm TECO 2030 has received an approval from DNV for a fuel cell power generator (FCPG) for use onboard ships. The generator is made up of multiple modular proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell systems and can be powered by hydrogen, ammonia or methanol. It can be used for “propulsion and auxiliary power,” TECO 2030’s chief executive Tore Enger said.

While green hydrogen is one of the cleanest fuels available for decarbonising smaller vessels, it has yet to make a technological breakthrough to power large ocean-going vessels.

This is because most fuel cells rely on PEM technology. PEM fuel cells require constant supply of hydrogen to generate power. High cost and challenges associated with storing large quantities of hydrogen onboard vessels make PEM fuel cells expensive and impractical for long-distance voyages.

Larger vessels will need high-efficiency fuel cells for longer voyages, such as solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). Since SOFC technology in marine applications is still at a nascent stage, it may take some time before ocean-going vessels can fully transition to hydrogen propulsion.

While talk about the shipping industry’s shift to a mix of cleaner fuels might exude optimism, hard data shows more of a sobering reality.

DNV’s latest tally shows that there are now 16 confirmed ammonia-capable vessels on order for delivery towards 2027. There are 33 methanol-capable vessels in operation and 236 confirmed on order for delivery towards 2028. LNG leads the pack with 520 vessels in operation and another 514 on order for delivery towards 2028.

The International Chamber of Shipping estimates that there are over 50,000 merchant ships operating around the world. This means that confirmed alternative-fuelled vessels will only make up about 2.6% of the global fleet by 2028.

By Konica Bhatt

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