A new bio-methanol plant to meet Maersk's methanol demands
SunGas Renewables will build a second bio-methanol production facility capable of producing nearly 400,000 mt/year to cater demand of Maersk's future methanol vessels.
PHOTO: A.P.Moller-Maersk has a total of 25 methanol-fuelled vessels on its current order book. Maersk
US-based renewables producer SunGas Renewables will build its second bio-methanol plant in Central Louisiana in the US through its subsidiary Beaver Lake Renewable Energy.
Bio-methanol will be produced using wood fiber from local, sustainably-managed forests as feedstock. Its production requires little to no fossil fuel usage, thereby reducing its overall carbon footprint. However, it emits carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbon monoxide, which are naturally present in the waste streams.
According to SunGas Renewables, nearly 1 million mt/year of CO2 emitted by the project will be captured by CO2 pipeline operator Denbury Carbon Solutions.
“Using biomass from sustainably managed forestry along with carbon capture allows our project to generate green marine shipping fuel while simultaneously removing carbon from the atmosphere,” said Robert Rigdon, chief executive of SunGas Renewables.
Construction of the facility will begin in the second half of next year and production is scheduled to start in 2027.
SunGas Renewables confirmed that Maersk will offtake almost the entire production of 400,000 mt/year to fuel its fleet of methanol-powered container vessels.
Danish shipping major Maersk has 25 methanol-powered vessels in its order book so far. One of these vessels was recently delivered and is currently en route for its maiden voyage
To power its vessels, Maersk has so far signed supply agreements with ten methanol producers including SunGas Renewables.
Maersk has agreed to buy around 390,000 mt/year of bio-methanol from SunGas Renewables’ first production unit in the US. In addition, it will source over 1 million mt/year of green methanol by 2025 from other nine producers.
By Konica Bhatt
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