Recap 2023: The Year in Alternative Fuels

The COP28 summit in Dubai made headlines as 200 nations pledged to “transitioning away from fossil fuels”, in efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

There were, however, lots of pockets of dissatisfaction amid the global applause.

Several climate-vulnerable small island states and least-developed nations said the adopted draft was riddled with “a litany of loopholes”. Climate advocates underscored a need for urgent policy action to back up the net-zero-by-2050 aim.

IMO revises GHG strategy

The International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) adopted a revised greenhouse gas (GHG) strategy with the ambition of achieving net zero emissions “by or around” 2050. Its indicative checkpoints called for 20-30% reductions in GHG emissions by 2030, and 70-80% reductions by 2040.

However, some critics think the IMO's revised strategy lacks substance and is watered down.

Looking at the strategy's fine print, it became evident that it is not entirely Paris-aligned . Faig Abbasov, shipping programme director at EU’s Transport & Environment, likened the strategy to rearranging deckchairs on a sinking ship.

Several maritime stakeholders called for substantive action, such as adopting mid-term measures like a global GHG fuel standard and carbon levy by 2025 and implementing them by 2027. Micronesia proposed a $150/mt carbon levy on shipping emissions, backed by the “polluter pays” principle.

The IMO needs to set a more ambitious target for zero-emission bunker fuel uptake by 2030, said classification society ClassNK and think tank M?rsk Mc-Kinney M?ller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping (MMMCZCS ). The University of Maritime Services (UMAS ) proposed that all new vessels need to be zero-emission-ready by 2030.

Several of the world's biggest bunker fuel-consuming companies, like 马士基 (Maersk), MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company , 达飞轮船 , Hapag-Lloyd AG and Wallenius Wilhelmsen , asked for an end date for fossil-fuel-powered newbuild orders. They did not, however, specify the end date they had in mind or which shipping segments it should cover.

On the supply side, there were significant developments around ammonia and methanol in the past year.

First methanol-fuelled container ships

A few ships have run on methanol since the mid-2010s, and advances in engine technology since then have allowed larger and larger methanol-capable ships to be ordered. 2023 saw the first feeder container ship complete long-haul voyage fuelled by biomethanol, and a host of larger methanol-capable container ships were ordered.

Maersk's dual-fuel feeder vessel, Maersk Laura, completed a 21,500-km maiden voyage from the South Korean Port of Ulsan to the Danish Port of Copenhagen. The vessel bunkered biomethanol at Ulsan, Singapore , East Port Said and Rotterdam during the route, demonstrating the ports' green methanol bunkering capabilities.

The Maersk Laura will operate on a shipping route between Rotterdam and the Bay of Bothnia in the northernmost part of the Baltic Sea. It will run on methanol, Maersk said, but can also switch to VLSFO.

A Nordic coalition led by the Swedish circular carbon energy company Liquid Wind , set an aggressive goal on the supply front. It plans to construct 10 e-methanol plants in the Nordics by 2027, with a total of 80 plants planned by 2030. These 80 plants will be modular and will each have a nominal capacity of 100,000 mt/year. Once operational, they will theoretically be able to produce 8 million mt/year of e-methanol for bunkering.

Ammonia-capable engine debuts

Ammonia remains unavailable for bunkering as it has lacked engine readiness, bunkering infrastructure and safety regulations to handle the fuel. 2023 saw an engine manufacturer make a breakthrough and port authorities in Singapore and other places explore opportunities and barriers to rolling out bunker infrastructure. New confirmed vessel orders offered more hope for green ammonia’s eventual adoption as a marine fuel.

Finnish engine maker 瓦锡兰 launched the industry's first marine engine that will allow vessels to run on ammonia as soon as it becomes available for bunkering. A vessel running this engine on green ammonia can reduce its GHG emissions by over 70% compared to a conventional oil-fuelled engine. It can also run on diesel, LNG and biofuels.

While ammonia has zero-emission potential as a fuel, ammonia's poor ignition properties will mean that ammonia-powered vessel engines will need at least 5-20% pilot fuel like marine gasoil.

Three orders have been made for ammonia-fuelled vessels, according to DNV. These are scheduled for delivery in 2026 and include two newbuilds and one retrofit project. Two of the vessels are gas tankers and one is a tugboat.

Ammonia's role in shipping's greener future was accentuated when Singapore, the world's largest bunkering port, confirmed to ENGINE that it is actively exploring whether ammonia bunkering can be launched by 2026.

Experts foresee green ammonia and green methanol as key ingredients in the shipping sector’s green transition towards 2050, but any widespread adoption as of them as bunker fuels is still a long way ahead.

Significant challenges remain before green ammonia and green methanol can be adopted as bunker fuel alternatives. These include a lack of regulatory support, insufficient fuel supply and limited bunkering infrastructure. It could be possible to overcome some of the major obstacles by establishing green shipping corridors.

Green corridors get timelines

Project partners announced timelines for when several green shipping corridors in 2023, providing some insight into when they will be activated.

Industry giants including CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping Lines, Maersk, Ocean Network Express (ONE) and Evergreen are expected to pilot low-emission vessels on the Shanghai-Los Angeles/Long Beach green shipping corridor by 2025, and zero-emission container vessels by 2030.

The Silk Alliance , a cross-supply chain industry partnership, intends to deploy vessels on pilot voyages using low-carbon methanol in 2026, and low-carbon ammonia in 2027. Authorities in Australia and Singapore have set 2025 as a target date to develop green corridors with low- and zero-emission fuel supply chains between the two countries.

Additionally, green ammonia-powered ships are forecast to operate between West Australia and East Asia by 2028, a Global Maritime Forum (GMF) study suggests. This will help establish a green corridor on the iron ore trade route, it found.

While deadlines have been announced, details on how they will be met and the exact goals these corridors will achieve remain unclear. Although green shipping corridors may theoretically help to reduce maritime emissions, clear roadmaps and detailed progress reports will be crucial to their success.

By Konica Bhatt

Take a look at our selection of the five top alternative fuels stories from the last week of 2023:

Mitsubishi Gas and Maersk plan methanol bunkering in Japan

EU ETS should include maritime black carbon emissions – ICCT

ClassNK nod for MOL’s ammonia FSRU concept

Stolt Nielsen aims for 5-7% fuel savings with graphene coating

MSC Cruises connects to shore power in Malta