British carbon capture device in successful pilot

British carbon capture specialist Seabound has completed its maiden voyage, capturing 78% of a containership’s carbon emissions and more than 90% of its sulphur output. The pilot, which was made possible with the support of Hapag Lloyd and Lomar, and approved by ABS, saw data collected at sea for over two months. 

The pilot saw Seabound’s carbon capture device installed onto a 3,200 teu Lomar ship called Sounion Trader, which has been on charter to Hapag-Lloyd. The carbon emitted from the ship’s exhaust was captured and transformed into solid calcium carbonate pebbles so that it could be offloaded at port.

The pilot tests were completed in the Mediterranean Sea, Arabian Sea, and Persian Gulf across two months, capturing roughly one tonne of CO2 per day in a prototype system. 

Seabound’s founders said the tests lay the foundation for much larger-scale installations in the future. 

“Our pilot project demonstrates that we can capture carbon emissions directly onboard ships in a simple and cost-effective way,” said Alisha Fredriksson, CEO and co-founder of Seabound. “This breakthrough demonstrates that the shipping industry doesn’t have to wait for new fuels or solutions to reduce its emissions in the future – we can start to capture carbon from the existing fleet today.”

Seabound’s rapid progress since founding in late 2021 has already attracted prominent investors, including Eastern Pacific Shipping.