THE GLOBAL Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) and Hanwha Ocean have announced they will enter a five-year strategic partnership to advance maritime decarbonisation.
The announcement yesterday (21 October) will focus on the areas of alternative low and zero carbon fuels, energy efficiency technologies, and onboard carbon capture.
Th partnership marks the first collaboration between GCMD and a South Korean shipbuilding entity. Hanwha Ocean is considered one of the “Big Three” of South Korean shipbuilders, along with Hyundai and Samsung Heavy Industries.
The collaboration will see Hanwha leverage the company’s existing strengths in energy and materials, such as hydrogen, wind power, LNG, and ammonia, combined with its expertise in energy production facilities and transportation, in order to develop decarbonisation solutions.
Ammonia, a clean alternative fuel gaining traction in maritime, is a oarticular area of mutual interest for both GCMD and Hanwha, which play complementary roles to support the ammonia value chain.
Hanwha Ocean has committed to the development of ammonia-powered vessels, including its recent partnership with sibling companies, Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha Power Systems.
Meanwhile, GCMD has recently successfully completed a pair of ammonia transfers to showcase breakbulk and mimic bunkering operations between vessels at anchorage in the Pilbara region, which the organisation says is paving the way for ammonia bunkering in multiple ports when ammonia-fuelled vessels become available.
Onboard carbon capture is another area of mutual interest for the two parties; last year, the Korean Register and the Marshall Islands Registry granted Hanwha Ocean an approval in principle for their onboard carbon capture and storage technology, set to be implemented on future LNG carriers.
GCMD, meanwhile, in collaboration with a consortium of maritime leaders, recently released a report to assess the technical, operational, and economic feasibility of installing a OCCS retrofit onboard an MR tanker to reduce emissions, the study finding that the technology reduced emissions by as much as 20% at a fuel penalty of 10%.
CTO of Hanwha Ocean, Young Chang Shon, said Hanwha is actively participating in every wave of green innovation, developing advanced technologies to provide carbon-neutral maritime solutions.
“The time for action is now, and we are fully committed to driving meaningful change. Embarking on this journey with GCMD excites us as we work together to realize a carbon-free future for shipping,” Mr Shon said.
“Through this collaboration, not only will we contribute to environmental sustainability, but we will also create economic value for the maritime industry by paving the way for future-proof solutions.”
Lynn Loo, CEO of GCMD, said, “With Hanwha Ocean joining us as a Strategic Partner, I am excited about our combined efforts to advance decarbonization”.
“Hanwha Ocean and GCMD are addressing different parts of the value chain, whether in enabling ammonia as a marine fuel or further closing gaps in the onboard carbon capture value chain,” Professor Loo said.
“We look forward to co-learning with them, leveraging their expertise in our pilots to operationalise solutions, and leaning on their market leadership, to accelerate shipping’s efforts in this space.”
The two parties further affirmed their joint commitment to supporting the IMO’s greenhouse gas reduction targets, stating the new partnership will combine GCMD’s efforts to lower adoption barriers for decarbonisation solutions through trials with Hanwha Ocean’s ongoing innovations in green shipping technologies.
