World's first commercial-scale e-methanol plant opens in Denmark
By Isabelle Yr Carlsson
The world's first commercial-scale e-methanol plant began operations in Denmark on Tuesday, with shipping giant Maersk set to buy part of the production as a low-emission fuel for its fleet of container ships.
The shipping sector is under pressure to find new sources of fuel after a majority of countries gave their backing to measures to help meet the International Maritime Organization's targets towards eliminating carbon emissions by 2050.
So far zero-emission shipping fuels, such as green ammonia and e-methanol, which are produced using renewable energy, have tended to be more expensive than conventional fuel largely because they are not produced at scale.
"We expect that we will have a price parity with fossil methanol around 2035," Knud Erik Andersen, CEO of Denmark's European Energy, told Reuters.
Located in Kasso in southern Denmark, the new plant, which has cost an estimated 150 million euros ($167 million), will produce 42,000 metric tons, or 53 million litres, of e-methanol per year, its joint owners Denmark's European Energy and Japan's Mitsui said.
Maersk will be a major customer of the Kasso plant. It operates 13 dual-fuel methanol container vessels that can be powered with fuel oil and with e-methanol and has ordered another 13 of the vessels.
It said, the plant's annual production is enough to power one large 16,000 container vessel sailing between Asia and Europe.
For the smaller Laura Maersk, the world's first dual-fuel container ship, with a capacity of more than 2,100 twenty-foot equivalent units, requires only 3,600 tons of fuel per year.
The Laura Maersk was scheduled to fuel near Kasso on Tuesday.
Traditional methanol is typically produced from natural gas and coal.
The Kasso plant will make e-methanol using renewable energy and CO2 captured from biogas plants and waste incineration.
Maersk said one of the biggest challenges of switching to sustainable fuel was cost, and it is researching green fuel technologies and more efficient shipping to make the process cheaper.
European Energy CEO Andersen said the company has plans to expand the Kasso facility as well as a pipeline of similar plants in Europe, Australia, Brazil and the United States.
In addition to its use in shipping, e-methanol can replace fossil methanol in plastic production, meaning it can supply other Danish companies.
Drugmaker Novo Nordisk and toymaker Lego will use e-methanol from the plant for making injection pens and plastic elements, respectively.
Excess heat generated from the e-methanol production will be used to heat 3,300 households in the local area.
© Thomson Reuters 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Nikkei Asia
an hour ago
- Nikkei Asia
Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending bill wins congressional approval
The vote amounts to a victory for President Donald Trump, making his 2017 tax cuts permanent and delivering new tax breaks that he promised during his 2024 campaign. © Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- President Donald Trump's tax-cut package cleared its final hurdle in the U.S. Congress on Thursday, as the Republican-controlled House of Representatives narrowly approved the massive bill and sent it to him to sign into law. The 218-214 vote amounts to a significant victory for the Republican president that will fund his immigration crackdown, make his 2017 tax cuts permanent and deliver new tax breaks that he promised during his 2024 campaign.
Nikkei Asia
6 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
Dollar advances on stronger-than-expected US jobs data
NEW YORK (Reuters) -- The U.S. dollar rose against major currencies including the yen, euro and Swiss franc on Thursday after data showed that the U.S. economy created more jobs than analysts estimated, signaling the Federal Reserve might take longer to cut interest rates. The dollar strengthened 0.70% to 144.705 versus the Japanese yen and was up 0.40% to 0.79510 against the Swiss franc. The U.S. currency is on track to notch a second consecutive session of gains against both safe-haven currencies. The euro was 0.26% weaker at $1.1769. It is on track for the second straight day of losses. U.S. Labor Department data on Thursday showed that nonfarm payrolls increased by 147,000 jobs in June. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a rise of 110,000. The report was published a day early because of the July 4 U.S. Independence Day holiday. "It will be very difficult for the Fed to cut rates in this environment, with the labor market so strong," said Axel Merk, president and chief investment officer at Merk Hard Currency Fund in California. "The argument that Jerome Powell has made for the Fed to stay on the sidelines continues to hold." The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.27% to 97.01, on track for two straight sessions of gains, although it is still near multi-year lows. The rise in the dollar following the data was accompanied by an increase in U.S. Treasury yields. The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Federal Reserve, rose 9.1 basis points to 3.88%. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 4.1 basis points to 4.344%. Wall Street stock indexes including Dow Jones Industrial Average, the benchmark S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite were all up on the session. Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives advanced President Donald Trump's massive tax-cut and spending bill toward a final yes-or-no vote early on Thursday. The U.S. has lifted restrictions on exports to China for chip design software developers and ethane producers, a sign of easing trade tensions between the countries. The dollar strengthened 0.06% to 7.164 versus the offshore Chinese yuan. The British pound rose after losing ground in the previous session following a selloff in gilts. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office backed finance minister Rachel Reeves, easing concerns over her future. The pound strengthened 0.15% to $1.3656.
Nikkei Asia
10 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
France fines Shein $47m for deceptive business practices
Retail Antitrust agency accuses China-founded fast-fashion retailer of misleading customers France's antitrust agency said Infinite Style E-Commerce, which handles sales for the Shein brand, had misled customers about discounts, and that the company had accepted the fine. © Reuters PARIS (Reuters) -- France's antitrust agency said on Thursday it had fined fast-fashion retailer Shein 40 million euros ($47.17 million) for alleged deceptive business practices including misleading discounts and vague claims about environmental impact, following a nearly year-long probe. The agency said Infinite Style E-Commerce, which handles sales for the Shein brand, had misled customers about discounts, and that the company had accepted the fine. In a statement, China-founded Shein said the antitrust agency had informed Infinite Style E-Commerce of issues related to discounts and environmental claims in March last year, and had taken corrective action within the following two months. "All of the points raised have therefore been resolved more than a year ago," Shein said in a statement. "ISEL takes very seriously its legal and regulatory obligations in France."
