German energy firm Uniper has formed partnership with shipping services provider Liberty Pier Maritime Projects and engineering firm Ship Design & Consultto to develop green methanol as a sustainable and carbon-neutral marine fuel.
Uniper sees green methanol as a sensible solution for decarbonisation, both for European coastal shipping and international deep sea shipping. It can also be used for specialist applications, such as cruise ships and inland navigation.
The three firms have formed an open collaboration, the Green Methanol Cooperation (GMC), which will develop the infrastructure and logistics framework needed to supply methanol in Europe and establish the relevant shipping requirements.
A medium-term goal of the GMC is to build ships that can run on green methanol and the project will initially focus on European coastal shipping using ships with a load capacity of 5,300 and 8,300 tons and container feeders.
The companies have committed to using a completely digitalized and transparent approach to their collaboration.
“Providing and using green methanol as a fuel for the maritime industry is a logical step in the implementation of our hydrogen strategy within the wider framework of our decarbonization efforts. With Liberty Pier and SDC, we have gained two experienced and knowledgeable partners from the maritime industry who want to collaborate with us to establish green methanol as a maritime fuel on the market,” said David Bryson, COO of Uniper.
