The objective of this agreement with these two companies is to create a marine value chain and begin the commercialization by 2023/24 of ammonia and methanol as shipping fuels of the future.
OCI N.V. (Euronext: OCI) announced today that it has signed two separate agreements:
- MAN Energy Solutions (MAN) and Hartmann Gas Carriers Germany GmbH & Co (Hartmann), under which OCI intends to charter ammonia vessels built, owned and operated by Hartmann and its business partner, GasChem Services. The association aims to boost the commercialization of ammonia-fueled vessels and accelerate the energy transition and decarbonization of the shipping industry.
- MAN Energy Solutions and Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS). The association will aim to upgrade the existing vessels of EPS’s tanker fleet to methanol and ammonia vessels to boost the commercialization of these fuels and provide a path for the current fleet of conventional fuel tankers to decarbonise. The intention is for OCI to charter the first refurbished methanol-fueled vessel operated by EPS using MAN engines and technology already in service within the next two years.
Shipping currently accounts for almost 3% of global CO2 emissions, but it is one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonize due to the profitability of heavy fuel oil and dispersed refueling. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has set emission targets for 2030 and 2050 that can only be achieved by adopting low-carbon fuels in new and existing vessels.
In addition to newly built ships, converting conventional fuel engines to methanol and ammonia will be essential to meet these goals. These two partnerships focus on the full spectrum of retrofits and new construction to ensure that as many vessels as possible can reach compliance on time.
Compared to hydrogen and LNG, ammonia is widely used and easier to store with an extensive global storage and distribution infrastructure.
Methanol is a liquid and is interchangeable with most tank and pipeline refined products, making its adoption seamless with existing fueling infrastructure.
The emergence of ammonia and methanol as the most logical alternative to conventional fuels presents a great opportunity for OCI. Therefore, the company has made it a top priority to manufacture these established low-carbon fuels for shipping and is accelerating the transition to produce additional blue and green ammonia and methanol at its plants.
OCI is well positioned to capture this huge potential demand as one of the world’s largest producers of ammonia and methanol. Furthermore, OCI is the world’s largest producer of biomethanol.