Danish energy company Orsted has taken FID on its 50,000t/yr Flagship One e-methanol project in northern Sweden.

The company has also taken full ownership of the development by acquiring the remaining 55pc stake from original developer Liquid Wind.

Flagship One will be co-located with a combined-heat-and-power (CHP) plant in Ornkoldsvik. Biogenic CO₂ emitted from the CHP plant will be captured and combined with green hydrogen to produce e-methanol.

50,000t/yr – Output from project

Denmark’s Topsoe will provide engineering, procurement and fabrication for the technology process as well as pre-assembled modules for the facility and free-standing equipment such as the methanol reactor and distillation columns.

E-methanol is the best solution available to decarbonise global shipping, according to Orsted CEO Mads Nipper.

“Now, more than ever, the world needs bold green energy projects to fight climate change, decarbonise hard-to-electrify sectors and secure regional energy independence,” he says.

Orsted will start construction of Flagship One in spring 2023. The facility is expected to enter into operation in 2025 and will provide decarbonised fuel to the shipping industry—an area of increasing focus for Orsted.

The company is also developing the 300,000t/yr Project Star in the US Gulf Coast area and the Green Fuels for Denmark project in Copenhagen.

The industry needs supportive regulation to incentivise demand and to drive the commercialisation of green fuels, according to Olivia Breese, CEO of Orsted power-to-X.

“The power-to-X industry urgently needs supportive frameworks that enable the transition away from fossil fuels, and we call on policymakers to take action to match the climate ambitions of developers and shipping companies,” she says.

The shipping industry needs to reduce its emissions by almost 15pc from 2021–30, according to IEA’s 2050 net-zero scenario.

The agency points toward technological innovation, supportive policies and collaboration across the value chain to develop and deploy low-carbon fuels in the industry.

A report from thinktank the Energy Transitions Commission in July saw methanol as one of four main technologies that will need to be deployed to decarbonise the shipping sector. The others were e-LNG, ammonia and hydrogen fuel cells.

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Author: Tom Young