Alfa Laval part of shipboard carbon capture effort

Alfa Laval will be a technology partner for the world´s first project to demonstrate end-to-end shipboard carbon capture at scale

Alfa Laval will be part of the project initiated by the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonization (GCMD), Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) and Stena Bulk to investigate the onboard capture, storage and off-loading of carbon dioxide (CO2). Alfa Laval will bring to the project technological and engineering expertise to help understand the challenges and opportunities of deploying carbon capture technology on ships.

Project ReMarCCAbLE will test onboard carbon capture using Stena Bulk’s MR tanker (Photo: Stena Rederi)

Project ReMarCCAbLE (Realizing Maritime Carbon Capture to demonstrate the Ability to Lower Emissions) is the world’s first project aimed at demonstrating shipboard carbon capture at scale.

As part of the two-year program, the seven-member consortium will test a carbon capture unit onboard a Stena Bulk MR tanker to assess the operational challenges on a ship at sea and identify potential cost reduction measures for future commercial applications.

The success of project ReMarCCAbLE has the potential to accelerate commercial deployment of shipboard carbon capture technology by 2026.

“GCMD is proud to convene a strong group of stakeholders to pilot one of the mid-term solutions needed to help the maritime sector to decarbonize,” said Professor Lynn Loo, CEO of GCMD. “Project ReMarCCAbLE is in line with GCMD’s goals of lowering the barriers for adoption so international shipping can meet or exceed the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) GHG emissions reduction targets for 2030 and 2050. We look forward to tapping on Alfa Laval’s expertise in this domain to enable the pilot.”

Alfa Laval has been part of carbon capture testing projects and studies in the past and Project ReMarCCAbLE will help in expanding the company’s knowledge in the field. Alfa Laval aims to explore the potential of the technology to meet decarbonization goals, assess the validity of the technical assumptions made during the feasibility study done by the consortium, and analyze the integration and operation challenges of fitting and running the technology while sailing.

“Since the production of zero-carbon fuels to scale will take some time, we see carbon capture coupled with low carbon fuels as one of the potential pathways to help the shipping industry navigate to a net zero future,” said Sameer Kalra, president of the Marine Division at Alfa Laval. “This partnership is therefore an excellent opportunity towards developing such a solution. We want to evaluate the commercial and environmental implications as well as identify the challenges and opportunities in the implementation of a carbon capture system on board a vessel. The findings will help in the development of the technology at scale.”

Project ReMarCCAbLE is divided into three phases. In the first phase, Alfa Laval will be a key contributor in designing, engineering, testing and installing the solution on board the MR tanker. Not only will Alfa Laval support the project with its technological experience in this field, but it will also make Alfa Laval Test and Training Centre available for testing the carbon capture installation and to provide training to the crew before it is installed on a ship.

“For us, it is about being right at the forefront in the evolution of new sustainable technologies and supporting their development into an environmental and economically viable solution that can benefit our customers,” said Sameer. “Decarbonizing the marine industry demands a wide range of emission-reducing technologies in addition to shifting towards green fuels. We want to facilitate the development of such technologies and help reduce vessels’ carbon footprint.”