Methanol as a commercially and technically viable marine fuel is gaining traction over other alternative bunkers, including LNG, as more shipowners adopt the clean-burning fuel as price spreads narrow and production ramps up.
That’s according to Greg Dolan, CEO of the Methanol Institute, a trade body whose shipowner members include Maersk, Stena Bulk, MSC, MOL and Oldendorff Carriers. Speaking at a virtual conference last week, he predicted that methanol production costs would fall to become more competitively priced than traditional diesel bunker and other alternative fuels.
Dolan suggested that the move to methanol would also help shipowners avoid the proposed carbon tax on diesel, which could be between US$250 and $450/t of CO2.
“There’s a call by many, including the world's largest shippers, for a carbon tax on diesel fuels. That would dramatically change the pricing picture for marine fuels - and the only available alternative fuel options today are advanced biofuels, LNG and methanol.”
As a transitional fuel, methanol is supported by the International Maritime Organization in its recent adoption of safe handling guidelines under the IGF Code for low flashpoint fuels.
“This has been an important milestone in the growth of methanol as a marine fuel,” Dolan said. “And while LNG paved the way for methanol, methanol adoption can be a model for ammonia and hydrogen in the future.”
According to Dolan, methanol production increased last year to 100Mmt, doubling production in a decade. He said production could reach 500Mmt by 2050, as predicted in a joint Methanol Institute/International Renewable Energy Agency report released earlier this year.
Commenting on those shipowners that have already announced plans to include methanol within their fuel pool, Dolan told attendees at the Maritime AMC-organised Alternative Fuels webinar that first movers, such as Maersk, understood “there is little time left to wait on potential solutions that might fulfil 100% of their 2050 goals. They know we don't have 30 years to wait”.
Maersk announced in March that its first methanol-burning vessel would launch in 2023, seven years ahead of schedule. The company also mooted an order for twelve 15 000-TEU methanol-fuelled containerships.
Closing the webinar Dolan said: “Methanol engines are available. The fuel is available. The infrastructure is there and it’s affordable. We can act now.”
