K Line, whose container ship division is now part of Ocean Network Express (ONE), is collaborating with Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and class society ClassNK, to develop a marine carbon capture and storage (CCS) system, that could see shipping meet decarbonisation targets.
The industry players will be supported by Japan’s Ministry of Land Infrastructure Industry and Transport (MLIT) as the group, part of the Carbon Capture on the Ocean project the team, install a CCS on a K Line general cargo vessel.
According to the plan Mitsubishi began the development of a small-scale marine CCS, which will use existing land-based technology, in August and will begin testing of the system on land in mid-2021.
Coal carrier Corona Utility will have the CCS fitted and, “By the end of fiscal 2021, the project partners will start operating the demonstration plant on-board the vessel and measuring the system’s performance under marine conditions, with the aim of jointly developing a new marine system for vessels.”
The system will be capable of operating on all vessel types and will offer a zero-carbon emissions technology for existing vessels according to the project partners. They added, “This project will not only verify the efficacy of capturing and storing CO2 from a vessel’s gas emissions, but also the operability and safety of CO2 capture facilities at sea.”
As the world’ first marine CCS system the project will offer “invaluable insights” into the design of such marine systems.
“The captured carbon is expected to be recycled as a new CO2 source for Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) processes or as raw material in synthetic fuel through methanation. In this way, the project will significantly contribute to the long-term reduction of greenhouse gas emissions,” added the partners.
