Denmark’s Norden is partnering with Kvasir Technologies, from the Technological University of Denmark, to develop a patented technology to produce fuel from plant material, the latest move from the line to look for alternative fuels.
In light of the environmental regulations coming into force from January 2020 and the industry’s targets towards sustainability in protection of the environment, alternative fuels are a priority for stakeholders, boosting the options for fuel compliance.
Namely, Kvasir Technologies has a technology that enables the production of fuel from plant material, producing liquid biofuel by transforming the part of biomass known as lignin, which is often seen as a waste product. The latter is most of the times discarded without being used.
That is why, lignin can be found in large quantities, allowing for a high degree of scalability compared to other feedstocks.
Additionally, in the 3.5-year cooperation, Norden plans to implement a full-scale test of Kvasir’s fuel on one of its vessels at a later stage.
Henrik Røjel, fuel efficiency and decarbonisation manager at Norden commented that
At Norden, we want to drive the shipping industry towards a cleaner future. If we are to truly make a difference, testing fuel alternatives is the right starting point.
Concluding, Joachim Bachmann Nielsen, CEO at Kvasir Technologies stated that
This project will demonstrate the suitability of our biofuel as bunkers and further accelerate the technological development.