The global shipping industry is responsible for ~2.9% of global greenhouse gas emissions, which equals almost 1 billion metric tons of CO2 each year. Unchecked, emissions could increase by as much as 130% from 2008 levels by 2050. Transitioning to low-carbon fuels will be essential to secure the long-term future of the industry and meet International Maritime Organisation(IMO) emissions reduction targets for 2030 and 2050, but still-developing technologies and the long lifetime of existing vessels makes this challenge even bigger.
Currently there are more than 70,000 vessels trafficking our oceans, with an average lifespan of approximately 25-30 years. Finding a low emission fuel for these vessels is no easy task, but now is the time to accelerate the transition. Methanol offers not only immediate, and urgently required, benefits but the only clear pathway to a sustainable future.
Proman, one of the world’s largest producers of methanol, has together with Stena, a privately owned shipping company operating approximately 140 vessels, decided to take on this challenge. Proman and Stena are committed to jointly developing a Retrofit & Supply solution, enabling both Stena’s vessels as well as third party vessels to experience the immediate environmental benefits and greenhouse gas emission reductions delivered by methanol.
By switching to this clean-burning fuel, methanol-powered vessels can lead the transition to a lower carbon future and significantly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions generated by conventional oil-based fuels bringing an immediate improvement in air quality around ports and shipping lanes. Sulphur oxides(SOx) and particulate matter emissions are practically eliminated, carbon dioxide(CO2) emissions reduced, and nitrogen oxides(NOx) is cut by ~60%. Furthermore, methanol’s biodegradable and water-soluble qualities significantly reduce the risk to marine environments.
Proman and Stena have uniquely complementary skills enabling them to jointly offer a turn-key solution for the shipping industry to benefit from a methanol-based pathway to a sustainable low-carbon future. In 2015 Stena was the first ship owner in the world to convert a large vessel to methanol power together with a current partner. Since then, the vessel has been operated safely and conveniently, thereby demonstrating the potential of using methanol as a marine fuel. Methanol produced from natural gas brings an immediate CO2 reduction which will be further reduced to over 90% as renewable and sustainable methanol becomes more widely available as marine fuel.