Six years after the ‘Stena Germanica’ became the world’s first methanol-powered RoPax ferry, Stena Line refueled the vessel with methanol recycled from residual steel gases, in a world’s first.
The 240-meter-long ferry started operating on the Göteborg – Kiel route as the world’s first methanol-powered RoPax ferry on 26 March 2015, as part of a cooperation of Stena with several partners, including Methanex, Wärtsilä and EU’s Motorways of the Seas project.
The dual-fuel system onboard Stena Germanica allows the vessel to run on both methanol and diesel fuel and since then, it is a part of the daily operation, reducing sulphur and particles by 90% and nitrogen by 60%.
[smlsubform prepend=”GET THE SAFETY4SEA IN YOUR INBOX!” showname=false emailtxt=”” emailholder=”Enter your email address” showsubmit=true submittxt=”Submit” jsthanks=false thankyou=”Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list”]
On 22 June 2021, Stena took the next step by refueling Stena Germanica with recycled methanol from residual steel gases. As explained, the steel industry and maritime sector are two of the world’s biggest emitters of CO2, accounting for as much as 8 % and 2.5 % of CO2 emissions, respectively.
The move is part of the EU-funded FReSMe project that explores the possibilities to convert CO2 to methanol via steel production to power marine transport. Stena is one of many partners in then project, which also includes the Swedish steel production company SSAB and the Swedish metals research institute Swerim.
A great collaboration between the steel industry and maritime, showing there are ways of drastically reducing climate impact by working together,
…stated Erik Lewenhaupt, Head of Sustainability at Stena Line.
