Maersk completes world-first ship-to-container ship methanol bunkering

Maersk’s container vessel – the world’s first container vessel sailing on green methanol – was successfully refuelled with approximately 300 tonnes of bio-methanol via Hong Lam Marine’s Singapore-registered tanker, MT Agility, for its onward maiden passage to Copenhagen. MT Agility had earlier taken bio-methanol stored at Vopak Terminals.

The container vessel will be named in a ceremony in Copenhagen in September. 

In preparation for the methanol bunkering operation in Singapore, MPA worked with more than 28 agencies, partners and institutes to organise table-top exercises and workshops, before carrying out a ground deployment exercise. 

A technical reference (TR) for methanol bunkering is being developed by MPA in consultation with the Standards Development Organisation at Singapore Chemical Industry Council. The TR will cover the refuelling requirements, operational and safety requirements for delivering methanol from a bunker tanker to receiving vessels, crew training and competency.

MPA chief executive Mr Teo Eng Dih said, “The success of the methanol bunkering operation is the result of nearly a year’s preparations with various government agencies, research institutes, international collaborators and industry to develop rigorous safety procedures through indepth operational and risk assessments, modelling and validation. This operation will help inform the development of the various standards, including the TR for methanol bunkering operations in Singapore, and guide our approach for future pilots and trials of new marine fuels.”

AP Moller–Maersk head of energy transition Morten Bo Christensen said, “This journey is an important step in our efforts to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, as it will allow us to gain the necessary operational experience to operate the new engines and the fuel provided by OCI Global ahead of the arrival of our larger methanol-enabled vessels in the coming years.”

The green methanol (OCI HyFuel) for the bunkering in Singapore was supplied by OCI Global from its Texas facility. This comes on the back of its successful completion of the world’s first green methanol bunkering operation at the Port of Ulsan, South Korea last week. 

Through its OCI HyFuels brand, OCI Global is the world’s largest producer of green methanol. OCI HyFuels’ green methanol is a second-generation biomethanol that provides a 65% greenhouse gas emissions reduction versus the fossil comparator based on a lifecycle basis. 

OCI Global said, “This second bunkering operation demonstrates the safety and ease of barge-to-ship bunkering of biomethanol in one of the world’s most important ports, providing hands-on experience for the port teams that will help pave the way for future green methanol-powered ships.”