Orders for 18 ultra-large container ships capable of burning methanol help maintain momentum for the alternative fuel in the liner segment, while MAN Energy Solutions sets dual-fuel engine milestone
2022 has been a landmark year for LNG with record orders for newbuildings, but October belonged to another alternative fuel — methanol.
During the month, South Korean and Chinese shipyards signed orders to build 18 ultra-large container ships (ULCSs) that will be powered by dual-fuel methanol engines. These deals were inked by liner companies AP Møller-Maersk, COSCO Shipping and OOCL.
COSCO-owned OOCL and COSCO Shipping Lines signed a newbuilding contract for a dozen 24,000-TEU green-methanol-ready container ships with Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) and Dalian COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (DACKS).
NACKS, a joint venture between Kawasaki Shipbuilding and COSCO Shipping, will build seven of the ultra-large container ships (ULCSs), while DACKS shipyard, another joint venture between COSCO Shipping and Kawasaki Shipbuilding, will build the remaining five ships. These ULCSs will be assigned to COSCO Shipping, while the seven built by NACKS will be assigned to COSCO subsidiary OOCL.
Worth a total of US$2.86Bn – working out to US$239.85M per ship – the delivery of the new ships will take place between 2026 and 2028, according to the companies.
AP Moller-Maersk, meanwhile, ordered six 17,000-TEU ULCSs from Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI). Maersk said the new vessels, all for delivery in 2025, will replace existing capacity in its fleet.
The six 17,000-TEU vessels running on green methanol will save about 800,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, according to Maersk estimates. This most recent order raised Maersk’s methanol dual-fuel fleet under construction to 19.
October – methanol month
DNV principal consultant Martin Christian Wold noted the increased interest in methanol in a social media post, saying October was the first month orders for methanol-fuelled ships outnumbered LNG.
While orders for 18 methanol-fuelled ships were placed in October, just eight LNG-fuelled newbuild orders were placed. “The car-carrier segment is fuelling the growth this month, bringing the total number of ships in this segment to 112,” wrote Mr Wold.
Meanwhile, the global fleet of methanol-fuelled vessels continues to grow. There are 20 dual-fuel methanol vessels in operation, with 64 on order, with deliveries extending to 2028. Based on current orders and delivery dates, the global dual-fuel methanol fleet will almost triple in size by 2024, jumping from 20 to 58. Much of this growth will be propelled by container ships, where the segment will see its first delivery — AP Møller-Maersk’s 2,100-TEU methanol, carbon-neutral feeder ship, currently under construction at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD).
“The future looks promising for methanol”
“As a fuel, the future looks promising for methanol and we fully expect its uptake to encompass around 30% of all dual-fuel engine orders in just a few years from now,” said MAN Energy Solutions head of promotion and customer support, Thomas S Hansen.
Overall, there are 47 container ships, seven oil/chemical tankers, four general cargo ships, four offshore vessels, one tug and one other type vessel in the order book that will be capable of burning methanol, according to DNV’s Alternative Fuel Insights.
In the offshore renewables sector, SAL Heavy Lift and partner Jumbo Shipping ordered four 149.9 m heavy-lift ships that will be built with methanol dual-fuel engines. The first two ships in the series, delivered in 2024, will be exclusively involved in the transport of offshore wind turbine components for Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
Two-stroke technology
Orders for methanol-fuelled vessels stem from underlying confidence in fuel availability and engine technology. In early November, MAN Energy Solutions reported its portfolio of two-stroke, dual-fuel engine technology had passed 1,000 units on order or in service. These slow-speed engines, either based on the Diesel principle or Otto-cycle, burn LNG, methanol, ethane and LPG.
“This is yet another significant milestone for our dual-fuel portfolio that provides the green solutions desired by the marine market,” said MAN Energy Solutions SVP and head of low-speed engines Bjarne Foldager. “Our low-speed engines offer multiple paths to decarbonisation and we see the increasing adoption of dual-fuel technology as an irreversible trend,” declared Mr Foldager.
Based on newbuilding ordering and engine ordering, Mr Foldager’s confidence seems to be well placed. The Danish engine designer’s alternative fuel engine portfolio has built on the success of its ME-GI two-stroke, Diesel-cycle, high-pressure dual-fuel engine, which was launched at a full-scale demonstration at its Copenhagen Research Centre more than a decade ago, in 2011. The ME-GI (gas-injection) engine accounts for more than half of MAN Energy Solutions’ dual-fuel engine sales, with 538 to date.
“The increasing adoption of dual-fuel technology is an irreversible trend”
This was followed with the development of ME-LGI (liquid gas injection) in 2015, and the subsequent release of the first sea trial of the ME-LGIM methanol dual-fuel engine in 2016. MAN Energy Solutions has secured 78 ME-LGIM orders.
Six MAN B&W G95ME-C10.5-LGIM dual-fuel main engines will be produced under licence at Hyundai Heavy Industries Engine & Machinery Division (HHI-EMD) and supplied to the South Korean group’s shipbuilding division for installation in Maersk’s six 17,000-TEU ULCSs, ordered in October.
Explaining methanol’s growing momentum as an alternative fuel for shipping, Mr Foldager ticked off several drivers. “Crucially, MAN B&W methanol engines are available and proven, with the first engines having already entered service back in 2016,” he said. “Additionally, as a fuel, methanol can be carbon-neutral when produced from renewable energy sources and biogenic CO2. The production capacity of such green methanol is currently increasing significantly; it is also liquid at ambient conditions, which simplifies tank design and minimises costs. Finally, our methanol engine only requires a fuel-supply pressure of 13 bar and a number of manufacturers already offer such fuel-supply systems,” noted Mr Foldager.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.