SIBCON 2024: Shipping Executive Casts Doubt on Usefulness of Carbon Capture

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Friday October 11, 2024

A shipping executive speaking at Sibcon this week has questioned how useful onboard carbon capture systems will ever be to the industry.

Carbon capture systems remove carbon emissions from a ship's funnel, allowing them to be stored and then taken away at port. If proven effective, they could allow ships to continue burning conventional bunker fuels while reducing emissions.

But the technology's downsides may prove insurmountable in many cases, a shipping executive said at Sibcon this week.

"I am an engineer, and I struggle with carbon capture on board," the executive said in a panel session on Wednesday.

"First, let's look at the retrofit ... you're going to lose cargo capacity, so your business case, your ship, your capacity of earning is going to reduce, because for every tonne of fuel you consume, you're going to capture between two and three, plus whatever solvents or whatever is necessary.

"Second, you're going to have an increase in your fossil fuels; you're going to have between a 20-30% increase, and and that is not better for the planet.

"So in order for you to capture at 70-80%, you're spending another 20%.

"Third, you have to dispose of it, and in order to dispose of it, you need the infrastructure and ports to receive it, and you need to have some sort of certified chain to ensure that they're being disposed of."

Ship & Bunker News Team
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