Over 80% of the world's trade is effectively transported by sea. Every day, more than 100,000 vessels carry food, oil, raw materials, electronics, and other goods across the oceans. Concurrently, nearly 100% of the vessels are powered by fossil fuels, such as heavy fuel oil (HFO), accounting for about 2.9% of global CO₂ emissions, without counting the additional land logistics. E-methanol is a scalable and sustainable fuel alternative for HFO, and the technology, supply chains, and market already exist.
Today, large container vessels burn around 84,000 gallons per day of fuel, accumulating to 330 million metric tons per year of total fuel consumption, generating emissions with vicious effects on the environment and human health, e.g. CO₂ causes global warming, NOx accounts for respiratory diseases and particulate matters cause health issues.
Towards more sustainable maritime transport
The industry has been called to change its course. For example, the EU Fuel Maritime directive promotes the use of renewable, low-carbon fuels for ships and sets maximum limits for the yearly average greenhouse gas intensity of the energy used by ships, requiring the intensity to gradually decrease over time, reaching up to 80% reduction by 2050. Furthermore, the EU ETS covers 50% of emissions of the extra-EU voyage and 100% of the intra-EU voyage, surrendering 40% of total reported emissions in 2024, 70% in 2025, and 100% thereafter. These obligations bring the shipping industry into the EU carbon market. In addition, The IMO aims to cut industry emissions by 20% by 2030 and by 70% by 2040 . Using e-methanol supports compliance with stricter regulations and aligns with the global move towards sustainable shipping practices.
Deploying e-methanol as a marine fuel is a good mean for CO2 reduction, and dramatically lowers emissions of sulfur oxides (SOX), nitrogen oxides (NOX) and particulate matter (PM) compared to Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) or Marine Gas Oil (MGO). At ANDRITZ, we fuel the future of maritime by offering integrated P2X solutions for e-methanol production.