Equinor and Maersk Partner Up to Ensure Continued Green Methanol Supply

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Maersk and Equinor

A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) and Equinor have signed an agreement securing the supply of green1 methanol for Maersk’s landmark, new methanol-enabled feeder vessel during its initial months of operation from September 2023 and into the first half of 2024.

“Equinor is pleased to partner with Maersk to deliver greener fuels to the marine industry. Equinor is an established player in the European methanol market through its production plant at Tjeldbergodden, and we have ambitions to be a key provider of green methanol in the marine fuel segment, says Alex Grant, Senior Vice President for the liquid commodity segment at Equinor.

The agreement 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.

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. The method can contribute to a greener gas grid while capturing harmful methane emissions that would arise from the manure feedstock if left untouched. The biomethanol is ISCC EU certified in accordance with the EU Renewable Energy Directive.

“We are very pleased to partner with Equinor, as it’s entering this business area. Getting energy majors to the table and supplying future fuels at scale is critical. 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,” says Rabab Boulos, Chief Infrastructure Officer at A.P. Moller – Maersk.

In the 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.

Maersk has an ambitious 2040 net zero greenhouse gas emissions target and aims to transport a minimum of 25% of Ocean cargo using green fuels by 2030. 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 has 24 additional methanol vessels on order for delivery between 2024 and 2027 and has a policy to only order new, owned vessels with a green fuel option.

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Ryan Finn
Ryan is the Digital Marketing and Content Creation Manager for Trade and Logistics Siam Ltd. He provides a creative flair to the team and his resourcefulness helps to bring an imaginative improvement to both literary archetypes and online content production. A writer by day and a rider by night, when he's not composing the latest logistics news update or creating compelling copy for our clients, Ryan spends his free time travelling Thailand by motorbike.