COSCO Heavy Industry Shanghai Co. Ltd. has signed a contract with MAN Energy Solutions for the methanol retrofit of four main engines from COSCO Line’s ‘Camellia’ and ‘Virgo’ -class vessels—13,800 and 20,000 teu respectively. Currently equipped with single-fuel MAN B&W 11S90ME-C10.5 engines, the vessels will be retrofitted to dual-fuel MAN... Read more →

The Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Caterpillar Inc. have entered into a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) to investigate using methanol as an alternative fuel source for four-stroke internal combustion marine engines. The collaboration supports efforts to decarbonize the marine industry, a hard-to-electrify transportation sector. Methanol... Read more →

Japan’s Tsuneishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. has ordered 3 × MAN B&W 7G50ME-C9.6-LGIM (-Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) main engines in connection with the building of 3 × 81,200 dwt bulk carriers for Danish shipping company, J. Lauritzen. Each engine will feature MAN Energy Solutions’ proprietary EGRBP (Exhaust Gas Recirculation ByPass) emissions-reduction... Read more →

HIF USA, affiliate of HIF Global, the world’s leading eFuels company, and the Japanese energy company Idemitsu Kosan, signed a letter of intent to negotiate a sale and purchase agreement for eMethanol from the HIF Matagorda eFuels facility currently in development in Texas (earlier post), and to study the joint... Read more →

MAN Energy Solutions announced that a dual-fuel version of its MAN 175D high-speed engine, capable of operating on methanol, will be available by the end of 2026. The new variant, designated MAN 175DF-M, will be available both as newbuild and retrofit variants. MAN Energy Solutions states that the 175DF-M will... Read more →

China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES), the Shanghai-listed shipping giant and daughter company of China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI), has ordered a MAN B&W 7G80ME-LGIM (-Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) main engine in connection with the construction of a VLCC (Very Large Crude Carrier), marking the first such dual-fuel methanol order for... Read more →

An offtake agreement between A.P. Moller - Maersk and Chinese developer Goldwind, a global leader in clean energy, reaches into the next decade and marks the first large scale green methanol offtake agreement for the global shipping industry. This deal is a milestone for Maersk as it enables it to... Read more →

SunGas Renewables announced it has been selected by Australian green hydrogen and methanol project developer, ABEL Energy, to supply green methanol for a new $1.4-billion facility in Northern Tasmania, Australia. Johnson Matthey, a leading methanol synthesis technology and catalyst supplier, was also selected to supply key technologies for the project.... Read more →

Blue World Technologies and AGCO Power have developed a range extender concept and prototype for an electric Fendt e100 Vario tractor based on Blue World’s HT PEM fuel cell platform enabling long operation time using liquid methanol as fuel. Field demonstration of an early concept electric Fendt tractor with a... Read more →

Airbus will renew the entire fleet of chartered vessels that transport aircraft subassemblies between production facilities in Europe and the United States with three modern, low-emission roll-on/roll-off vessels, supported by wind-assisted propulsion. Airbus has commissioned shipowner Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LDA) to build, own and operate these new, highly efficient vessels... Read more →

thyssenkrupp Uhde has been awarded a contract by ENOWA, NEOM’s energy and water company, for engineering services and the supply, design and procurement of equipment for a new CO2-to-methanol and methanol-to-gasoline demonstration plant at ENOWA’s Hydrogen Innovation and Development Center (HIDC) in Saudi Arabia. The plant is a joint development... Read more →

Carbon Recycling International (CRI) and Jiangsu Sailboat successfully started up a CO2-to-methanol plant, CRI’s second in China. The Jiangsu Sailboat Methanol plant operates with CRI’s proprietary Emissions-to-Liquids (ETL) technology, transforming waste carbon dioxide and hydrogen gases into sustainable, commercial-grade methanol. (Earlier post.) The facility is built to recycle 150,000 tonnes... Read more →

In the presence of the Egyptian Prime Minister, C2X signed a comprehensive Framework Agreement (FWA) with its Egyptian sponsors and partners with the goal of enabling and accelerating large scale production of green methanol in Egypt. C2X aims to build, own, and operate assets to produce green methanol at scale... Read more →

China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) has ordered six MAN small-bore, seven-cylinder 21/31DF-M, methanol-burning GenSets in connection with the construction of 2 × 9,300 ceu (car equivalent units) PCTCs (pure car and truck carriers) for China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES). The business represents the first order for the new methanol-powered, MAN... Read more →

OCI Global, the world’s largest producer of green methanol, plans to double its green methanol production capacity to approximately 400,000 metric tons per year in response to the growing demand for green methanol from numerous high emissions industries, including road transport, shipping and industrial. The scale-up plans include entering into... Read more →

A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) and Equinor signed an agreement securing supply of green methanol for Maersk’s new methanol-enabled feeder vessel (earlier post) during its initial months of operation from September 2023 and into the first half of 2024. The naming ceremony for the Danish-flagged 172-meter-long ship will be held... Read more →

At the IAA Summit in Munich, HIF Global, together with Porsche AG, Volkswagen Group Innovation and MAN Energy Solutions, announced the development and installation of a Direct Air Capture (DAC) unit at the HIF Haru Oni Demonstration facility in southern Chile in 2024. (Earlier post.) HIF’s Haru Oni is the... Read more →

Svitzer, a leading global towage provider and part of A.P. Moller-Maersk, has launched the second phase of its project to design the world’s first methanol hybrid fuel cell (MHFC) tug. Svitzer has conducted technical studies to establish the feasibility of this type of vessel accommodating the real-world operational requirements of... Read more →

Montauk Renewables—a renewable energy company specializing in the management, recovery and conversion of biogas into RNG—and its subsidiary Montauk Energy Holdings signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with EE North America, a North American subsidiary of Denmark–based European Energy, to deliver all biogenic CO2 volumes from all its Texas facilities... Read more →

Wärtsilä will supply methanol-fueled auxiliary engines for the French shipping company CMA CGM. The engines have been ordered for six 15,000 TEU container vessels which are being built at the Dalian Shipbuilding yard in China. The order was booked by Wärtsilä in Q2 2023. The six container vessels will be... Read more →

SunGas Renewables Inc. announced the formation of Beaver Lake Renewable Energy, LLC (BLRE), which will construct a new green methanol production facility in Central Louisiana. A wholly-owned subsidiary of SunGas Renewables, BLRE is expected to generate from the facility nearly 400,000 metric tons of green methanol per year for marine... Read more →

Enerkem, a producer of bio-methanol from mixed waste at commercial scale, and Dimeta, a joint venture between the two of the largest off-grid energy suppliers, are initiating feasibility studies for the development of two large-scale projects that will convert waste into renewable and recycled carbon dimethyl ether (DME). DME is... Read more →

SFC Energy AG, a supplier of hydrogen and methanol fuel cells for stationary and mobile hybrid power solutions, has launched the manufacturing of hydrogen and methanol fuel cells at its New Delhi/Gurgaon site in India. Together with long-standing Indian partner FCTecNrgy Pvt Ltd (FCT), the production facility was built and... Read more →

MAN Energy Solutions will begin developing methanol retrofit solutions for medium-speed marine engines as part of a research association including WTZ Roßlau gGmbh and TU-Darmstadt. The three-year research project, ‘CliNeR-ECo’, is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) with initial work having already commenced... Read more →

MAN Energy Solutions has signed a Conversion Commitment Agreement with Seaspan Corporation (Seaspan), a global leader in containership ownership and management in collaboration with Hapag-Lloyd, one of the leading global liner shipping companies. Under the terms of the agreement, MAN PrimeServ, MAN Energy Solutions’ after-sales division, will deliver 15 engine... Read more →

KOTUG Canada selected Türkiye’s Sanmar Shipyards to build two RAsalvor 4400-DFM dual fuel methanol escort tugs—Robert Allan Ltd. design—to service the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (TMEP). These tugs will escort tankers from the harbor limits of the Port of Vancouver to the open Pacific Ocean through the commercial shipping lanes... Read more →

bp ventures has committed $10 million, leading the Series B investment round, in WasteFuel, a California-based biofuels company that will use proven, scalable technologies to convert bio-based municipal and agricultural waste into lower carbon fuels, such as biomethanol. Globally, solid waste production totals about 2 billion metric tons annually and... Read more →

Technology group Wärtsilä has been contracted by Swedish ferry operator Stena Line to carry out and convert some of its vessels to operate with methanol fuel. The conversions will include the fuel supply system and engine modifications, as well as integrating the new installations with the ships’ existing systems. The... Read more →

Element 1 Corporation (e1) and NEXA Capital Partners LLC (NEXA) formed a new joint venture named Hydrogen Aviation Development Company (HADC or the JV). HADC is a special purpose energy company that will commercialize e1’s proprietary methanol-to-hydrogen generation technology for fuel cell applications within the aerospace sector including: Grid independent... Read more →

As a first in the shipping industry, A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) will retrofit an existing container ship to a dual-fuel methanol powered vessel. The first engine retrofit in the industry is scheduled to be conducted medio 2024 and it is the intent to replicate on sister vessels when going... Read more →

MAN Energy Solutions has introduced its latest engine, an auxiliary MAN 35/44DF CD type. Developed in cooperation with STX Engine and solely for production by MAN licensees, the new engine is particularly aimed at container and LNG carrier applications. The GenSet was developed with the clear aim of cutting down... Read more →

China Merchants Heavy Industry has ordered 2 × MAN B&W 7S60ME-LGIM (Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) engines in connection with the construction of 2 × 9,300 ceu (car equivalent units) Pure Car and Truck Carriers (PCTCs) for China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES). The order represents a number of firsts, including the... Read more →

Honeywell has introduced its new, UOP eFining technology, a ready-now solution for producing low-carbon sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). HIF Global, the world’s leading eFuels company, intends to deploy the new technology to produce eSAF at its second US eFuels facility— its first eSAF facility in the US. eFuels, also known... Read more →

Singapore—based Berge Bulk, one of the world’s leading independent dry bulk shipping companies, and ABS signed a joint project agreement to conduct a detailed feasibility study for the conversion of methanol-fueled propulsion system and aim to kickstart in Q1 2024. The two companies will collaborate on a broad range of... Read more →

Proman Stena Bulk, the joint venture between tanker company Stena Bulk and methanol producer Proman, successfully completed the first barge-to-ship methanol bunkering on the US Gulf Coast. The JV tankers Stena Pro Marine and Stena Prosperous were refueled with methanol via barge while discharging petroleum products at a terminal in... Read more →

At a ceremony in South Korea in March, HHI-EMD—a MAN Energy Solutions two-stroke licensee—marked the manufacture of the world’s largest methanol-powered two-stroke engine, a MAN B&W G95ME-LGIM type. Simultaneously, the engine’s manufacture pushed the company past the 200 million brake-horsepower milestone for low-speed, two-stroke engines. With its 95 cm cylinder... Read more →

Svitzer, a leading global marine operations and towage operator, and Caterpillar Marine signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to adopt solutions that enable Svitzer to utilize methanol in their fleet. The implementation of dual-fuel methanol engines focuses on new tugs as well as conversions of existing Cat-powered tugs, which comprise... Read more →

Neste has signed an agreement to charter two new lower-emission product tankers from Terntank. The tankers will transport a wide variety of liquid cargoes including renewable raw materials such as waste and residue oils and fats to Neste’s refineries. At the refineries, products such as renewable diesel and sustainable aviation... Read more →

MAN Energy Solutions’ MAN 49/60DF dual-fuel engine has received its Type Approval after a five-day program on the testbed at company HQ in Augsburg, Germany. The Type Approval Test (TAT) was witnessed by inspectors representing the ABS, BV, CCS, DNV, LR and RINA classification societies, who signed the test protocol... Read more →

WinGD will supply 10X92DF-M methanol-fuelled engines to four 16,000 TEU container vessels to be built for COSCO SHIPPING Lines at COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry (Yangzhou) Co. Ltd. These vessels will be delivered from 2025 and will feature WinGD’s first X92DF-M engines in China. The methanol engines will be delivered from... Read more →

Classification society RINA has granted an Approval in Principle (AiP) certificate to MAN Energy Solutions for its methanol-ready MAN L/V 32/44CR engine. The AiP covers an upgrade concept for the four-stroke engine for conversion to dual-fuel running on methanol to provide greater flexibility to shipowners. This AiP is based on... Read more →

Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. and HJ Shipbuilding & Construction Co. (HJSC) have respectively ordered seven and two MAN B&W G80ME-LGIM dual-fuel engines in connection with the construction of 9 × 9,000 TEU container vessels for HMM Co., the major South Korean integrated-logistics company. The engines, which are capable of... Read more →

Methanex Corporation and Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) announced that the dual-fuel methanol carrier Cajun Sun successfully completed the first net-zero voyage fueled by bio-methanol. The voyage is an example of how Methanex and MOL are collaborating to demonstrate the viability of methanol as a marine fuel with a pathway to... Read more →

China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) officially launched China’s first methanol-to-hydrogen and hydrogen refueling service station in Dalian, China. An upgrade from the previous fueling station offering oil, gas, hydrogen, electric charging services, the integrated complex can produce 1,000 kilograms of hydrogen a day, with a purity of 99.999%. Sinopec’s... Read more →

Liquid Wind (earlier post) is applying for an environmental permit for its second commercial-scale green electrofuel facility—FlagshipTWO—in Sundsvall, about 380 km north of Stockholm. The construction is planned to start in 2024 and the facility will be operational in the beginning of 2026. Planned production capacity is 130,000 tons of... Read more →

Following the start of series production of fuel cells in December 2022, the Danish fuel cell developer and manufacturer Blue World Technologies is now launching the CellPack Stationary, a methanol fuel cell-based power generator. The CellPack Stationary is specially developed for the telecommunication industry, an industry that every year installs... Read more →

The consortium of Abu Dhabi-based Masdar, TotalEnergies, Siemens Energy and Marubeni announced that the Masdar-led initiative focused on green hydrogen to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is actively working with licensors to certify a new production pathway for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from methanol. This novel pathway will provide one... Read more →

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have created a new system—the least costly to date—that efficiently captures CO2 and converts it into methanol. The new PNNL carbon capture and conversion system brings the cost to capture CO2 down to about $39 per metric ton. The... Read more →

Chartwell Marine has won a £320k Innovate UK Smart Grant. The grant will enable Chartwell and consortium partners—Boat Electric & Electronics and Engineered Marine Systems—to develop and test the feasibility of a market-first methanol-fuelled vessel design, with applications in the offshore wind, commercial workboat and leisure sectors. Methanol fuel presents... Read more →

Advent Technologies Holdings will collaborate with Alfa Laval, a global provider of heat transfer, separation, and fluid handling products, on a project to explore applications of Advent’s methanol-powered high-temperature proton exchange membrane (HT-PEM) fuel cells in the marine industry. Funded by the Danish Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program (EUDP),... Read more →