Norwegian Project to Research Carbon Capture and Storage on Ships

Norwegian shipping company Klaveness Combination Carriers became the first shipping line to join a new initiative that will explore the use of Carbon Capture & Storage technologies (CCS) for ships to reduce CO2 emissions. Apart from its ongoing work to improve its energy, operational, and trading efficiency, Klaveness is exploring and testing other innovative solutions to reduce its CO2 emissions. It believes that onboard CO2 capture systems can play an important role in meeting the shipping emission target before zero-carbon fuels become viable.

Led by SINTEF Energy Research, the CCShip project will collaborate with key research and industrial organizations to explore carbon capture aboard ships. The main objective of the CCShip project is to develop cost-effective solutions for carbon capture and storage from ships, as well as to understand when CCS can be a more attractive technology than alternative solutions to reduce CO2 emissions from ships. 

The base case in the CCShip project is solvent-based CO2 capture, which has been shown to be a feasible solution. DNV previously estimated that solvent-based absorption CCS would possibly reduce ship emissions by over 50 percent. However, while a recent study indicates onboard CCS can have higher economic feasibility than zero-carbon fuels, the project leaders highlight that solvent-based CO2 capture is likely to be an expensive solution.

The project will also focus on the potential of different novel CO2 capture solutions in terms of weight, compactness, integration, efficiency, and cost. To maximize opportunities for CO2 capture implementation, the project will investigate opportunities for different ship types and transport applications (size, fuel type, voyage distance), as well as consider both new-build and retrofitting of vessels.

“To reach our decarbonization targets of carbon-neutral operation within 2030, we need to evaluate all solutions contributing towards significant further reductions of CO2 emissions in our transport work,” says Engebret Dahm, CEO of Klaveness Combination Carriers. “We are excited to learn more about CCS and to contribute with our operational experience to this research project. We will continuously evaluate whether carbon capture may be one of the possible solutions for decarbonization for the Klaveness fleet.” 

In addition to Klaveness, participants in the CCShip project include SINTEF Energy Research (project leader), SINTEF Ocean, NTNU, University of Oslo, Seoul National University, Wärtsilä Moss, and Calix Limited. The CCShip project is funded by Wärtsilä Moss, Calix Limited, the Norwegian CCS Centre NCCS, as well as the Norwegian Research Council through the MAROFF program.