Page 11 - AsiaElec Week 05 2022
P. 11
AsiaElec CARBON CAPTURE AsiaElec
SHI wins approval for
onboard carbon capture
technology
SOUTH KOREA SOUTH Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries will include LNG-fuelled vessels in the longer
(SHI) said this week that it had received approval term remains up for debate, with some arguing
in principle (AIP) from the Korean Register of that LNG should only be treated as a transition
Shipping for a newly developed on-board car- fuel, but nonetheless the number of LNG-fuelled
bon capture system. The system is intended for ships in operation or on order has grown more
use on a broad range of vessels, but has been rapidly owing to the IMO 2020 requirements.
highlighted as an option for LNG-fuelled vessels It is against this backdrop that SHI and
in particular. Panasia are advancing their on-board carbon
SHI has partnered with Panasia, an energy capture development. There is still some way to
system company focused on sustainable technol- go, though. SHI said it was currently conduct-
ogies related to air and water quality, to develop ing a performance test on the technology, and it
the carbon capture system. The technology uses is planning to commercialise a carbon capture
an amine-based liquid absorbent to separate technology optimised for LNG-powered ships
and recover carbon dioxide (CO2) from exhaust by 2024.
gases produced from the LNG that is burned in If SHI or other players succeed in commer-
a ship’s engine or generator. cialising on-board carbon capture, this could
The two companies began their on-board help boost the popularity of LNG-fuelled ships
carbon capture project in 2020, the same year further still. Indeed, other programmes to
that the International Maritime Organization develop similar technologies are also underway.
(IMO) brought in new rules limiting sulphur In November 2021, the Oil and Gas Climate
content in marine fuels, known as IMO 2020. Initiative (OGCI) and Stena Bulk released the
The introduction of those rules spurred an inter- findings of a feasibility study that found that
est in LNG bunkering, which results in almost mobile carbon capture in shipping was tech-
no sulphur and particulate matter emissions and nically feasible but costly, especially in the
also achieves a roughly 90% reduction in nitro- nearer term. Nonetheless, the study found that
gen oxide (NOx) emissions. LNG carriers fuelled by LNG offered the most
Building LNG-fuelled vessels is estimated to straightforward path to installing carbon cap-
add about $5mn to construction costs, but this ture technology owing to the fact that such
is roughly equivalent to the cost of installing a vessels already had the most compatible mix of
scrubber on a conventionally fuelled ship. The on-board infrastructure. This was based on a
costs of retrofitting conventionally fuelled ships comparison among three classes of vessels that
to run on LNG have previously been found to be also included medium-range oil/chemical tank-
prohibitive, though technological advances are ers, and Suezmax oil tankers running on heavy
helping to bring such costs down over time. fuel oil.
The energy transition is picking up pace, with Despite the cost concerns, it appears that
a growing number of companies and countries work to develop on-board carbon capture will
alike committing to decarbonisation, and this continue, and even pick up momentum if some
means that even with added costs, interest in companies are able to commercialise it. In South
lower-carbon options is rising. Whether this Korea at least, SHI is leading the way.
Week 05 02•February•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P11
