Danish shipping giant Maersk goes big on green methanol

Image source: A.P. Moller - Maersk.

Danish shipping company AP Moller-Maersk A/S (CPH:MAERSK-A; CPH:MAERSK-B) today announced strategic partnerships with six companies in a number of markets, including Ørsted A/S (CPH:ORSTED), to source at least 730,000 tonnes of green methanol annually by end-2025.

The integrated container logistics company said in a statement it has entered into agreements with energy major Ørsted and renewables developer European Energy A/S of Denmark, California-based start-up WasteFuel, Swiss integrated energy firm Proman, as well as with China’s CIMC ENRIC and Green Technology Bank (GTB).

“To transition towards decarbonisation, we need a significant and timely acceleration in the production of green fuels. Green methanol is the only market-ready and scalable available solution today for shipping,” said Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, CEO of Fleet & Strategic Brands at A.P. Moller - Maersk.

The following table gives more details about the production capacity estimates under each partnership.

Strategic partner	Type of fuel	Production Capacity in 2024 (end of year) - tonnes/year	Production Capacity in 2025 (end of year) - tonnes/year	Production capacity added after 2025 - tonnes/year	Geography
CIMC ENRIC	bio-methanol	50,000		200,000	China
European Energy	e-methanol		200,000-300,000		North & South America
GTB	bio-methanol	50,000		300,000	China
Ørsted	e-methanol		300,000		North America
Proman	bio & e-methanol		100,000		North America
WasteFuel	bio-methanol	30,000			South America
Total		130,000	600,000-700,000	500,000

Maersk noted that with this newly-contracted production capacity, it will be able to exceed the green methanol needed for the first 12 green container vessels currently on order.

Read more about the partnership with Ørsted here.

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