Category Archives: Sustainability

Carbon Capture for ships – current state

Some people think carbon capture onboard is going to be important in meeting emissions goals for ships. There is some entrepreneurship, and some interest by large oil producers and purveyors.

However, many problems remain to be solved. There is essentially no ‘supply chain’ to handle the liquefied carbon product the ships produce onboard from running the carbon capture equipment. Liquid CO2 has a market, but ports are not set up to move it from the ships to storage nor to distribute it into commercial channels.

And it’s not yet clear how much emissions reduction there will be when conventional fuel is burned on ships but the carbon is captured.

Nevertheless, there is activity in this segment. This article explains what’s happening in one case, based on info from classification society DNV.

There are also several links to resources about carbon capture for ship engines.

I’m quite skeptical of carbon capture. It’s nominally a good thing. But the cost of the storage may be large. And how much captured carbon can we reuse?

If the oil companies are back of it, how can it be all good? What are the pitfalls?

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Barry Parker, New York Freelance Correspondent

September 17, 2024

https://www.seatrade-maritime.com/sustainability/onboard-carbon-capture-and-storage-gaining-ground

Geopolitics and shipping

Geopolitics is having a great effect on ocean shipping today. Trade is where wars are fought now. It may have been true in the past as well, but the means and methods are changing rapidly.

I listened to this podcast featuring Jon Thompson, co-founder and commercial director of Ambrey, an international risk management company. He made several interesting points.

What’s become possible only recently is to combine, using digital infrastructure, information about many factors into an overview of the risk attendant on any voyage. Ambrey has been working on displaying info about piracy, missile attacks, weather, environmental zones, conflict zones, fuel availability and usage, and others, so it can be incorporated into contracts and insurance provisions, as well as used by captains and ship managers to plan voyages to reduce risk and increase profit.

Ambrey started out supplying onboard security to ships, intending to prevent piracy. But their vision has now expanded to all the hazards commercial ships face; assessing, rating, and providing insurance against them.

Another point he made is that the oceans, 70% of the earth, are becoming better understood and measured. Ocean shipping needs to take advantage of this increasing knowledge about who’s using them where and what conditions they are facing.

John Thompson’s view of the data, analytics, and AI involved, and the business aspects it affects, is most interesting. Take a listen.

John also has interesting views on what he and others look for in hiring new people.

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Marcus Hand | Aug 08, 2024

https://www.seatrade-maritime.com/ship-operations/geopolitics-and-shipping-john-thompson-ambrey

Inditex partnership with Maersk shows it has designs on greener transport

The announcement by Maersk and Inditex, the parent of Zara, indicates the kind of cooperation we need to reach climate control goals. Both firms have 2040 target for zero emissions. Inditex is a large retailer that sources around the world, and Maersk can carry the goods. And Maersk’s choice of green methanol as a fuel gives it a running start on reaching its goals. So the combination is a significant one.

Both firms are also high-profile, and this sends a message to others that controlling maritime logistical emissions is important, both to investors and customers, and to the world’s citizens.

Goals such as those of the International Maritime Association (IMO) cannot be reached without major cooperative efforts that bring economic forces to bear. As economies of scale develop, so will technology and business interests to support it.

By Charlotte Goldstone 16/10/2023

Inditex partnership with Maersk shows it has designs on greener transport