GCMD Selects Lloyd’s Register for LCO2 Offloading Concept Study

The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) has selected Lloyd’s Register to undertake its concept study on offloading liquefied CO2 (LCO2) captured onboard ships.

The GCMD concept study will address safety and operational considerations surrounding the offloading of LCO2 that has been captured onboard tankers, bulkers and container liners, including articulating the temperatures and pressures under which this process would optimally take place and the different receptacles to be used for this purpose.

LCO2 is likely one of the common forms in which CO2 will be stored and offloaded after its capture onboard ships, says GCMD, and its offloading is likely to take place alongside concurrent cargo and/or bunkering operations.

Currently, there are no guidelines for offloading captured CO2. The findings of the study will form a basis to enable sea trials in Phase 3 of Project REMARCCABLE (Realising Maritime Carbon Capture to demonstrate the Ability to Lower Emissions). One of the world’s largest end-to-end demonstrations of shipboard CO2 capture at scale, Project REMARCCABLE is a 500-hour pilot that will be using a non-proprietary amine-based solution. The project aims to demonstrate a 30% annual CO2 emissions reduction or 1300 kg/hr of CO2, store 375 metric tonnes of LCO2 onboard Stena Impero, and then offload the LCO2 after 10 days of sailing.

A broader intent of this LCO2 offloading concept study is to assess the readiness of current infrastructure for LCO2 offloading. Scenario-based CAPEX and OPEX models for LCO2 offloading infrastructure buildout and operation costs will be generated. Additionally, a review of existing gaps in analytical methods, verification procedures, competency standards, and regulation regimes that are needed to enable LCO2 offloading at major ports will be conducted.

GCMD aims to validate and finalise the study’s findings with industry stakeholders, such as port and terminal operators, vessel owners, and shipyards. Both the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Port of Rotterdam Authority (POR) will act as observers on the study.

The study will commence in April 2023 and is expected to complete within nine months.