The Top Ten Maritime Decarbonization Milestones of 2024
The year behind us was marked by numerous advancements in developing alternative fuel solutions and technologies on the maritime decarbonization quest. The following article brings you an overview of ten milestones that painted the industry landscape in 2024.
1. MAN ES and Mitsui E&S perform world’s first hydrogen combustion test on marine 2-stroke engine
In early 2024, German engine maker MAN Energy Solutions (MAN ES) and its licensee Mitsui E&S completed the hydrogen combustion operation of a large marine 2-stroke test engine with a bore size of 50 cm on the premises of Mitsui E&S Tamano factory in Japan.
The partners reported that stable operation was achieved at various loads and operating conditions, including successful hydrogen combustion up to 100% load. Mitsui E&S also confirmed greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions of up to 95%, with the remaining fraction originating from the pilot-fuel employed during testing.
2. Industry-first advisory on methanol bunkering published by ABS
Classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) released an industry-first advisory on methanol bunkering in April 2024, providing the maritime industry with insight into the challenges of bunkering methanol and strategies to address them.
The ABS Methanol Bunkering: Technical and Operational Advisory delivers guidance regarding the technical and operational challenges of the supplier to the receiving vessel including critical design issues, regulatory compliance, safe practices, areas of operational processes to consider, training and safety aspects.