Researchers Achieve "Very Promising" Carbon Capture Results on LNG Carrier

Researchers are reporting very promising results in the first phase of a two-stage test of carbon capture as part of a demonstration designed to accelerate the implementation of the technology in the maritime sector. The first test is concluding in mid-February with results showing capture rates up to 85 percent are achievable and will move to a second stage which will be the first full carbon capture train in operation.

The project known as EverLoNG launched in October 2021 involving a broad coalition of industry leading companies from the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, the United Kingdon, and the United States, along from government funding from each of the countries. Scheduled to run till March 2025, it recently completed a major milestone according to organizers with the first deployment of a prototype system developed by Carbontreat in the Netherlands and installed onboard the Seapeak Arwa.

The installation took place in September 2023 aboard the Seapeak Arwa, an LNG carrier built in 2008 and operating for TotalEnergies. The 82,000 dwt vessel registered in the Marshall Islands has been operating trans-Atlantic arriving today, February 19, in Brest, France on a crossing from the United States. The test ran for over 1,000 hours during which the unit captured up to 250 kg of CO2 per day.

According to the project organizers, the initial results are “very promising,” and they are confident with further system optimization they can achieve and exceed a rate of 85 percent capture. As well as assessing the impact of ship-based carbon capture on the ship’s infrastructure and emissions, EverLoNG researchers are studying the effects of motion on CO2 capture rates and of exhaust gas impurities on capture solvent performance.

Following the Seapeak Arwa trial, the carbon capture unit will be removed and installed on board the SSCV Sleipnir, a semi-submersible crane vessel owned and operated by Heerema Marine Contractors. The massive crane unit, which is nearly 722 feet (220 meters) in length, also operates on LNG. 

The second stage of the test will run for approximately 500 hours of operation and will see the full CCUS chain in operation. The captured CO2 will be stored on board as a liquid in a container. The container will then be offloaded, and the CO2 transported to an industrial site for utilization, or stored permanently in the geological subsurface.

The EverLoNG project was designed to demonstrate capture technology on LNG-fueled ships and to optimize the integration of shipboard carbon capture. They project aims to facilitate the full CCUS chain and also contribute to the regulatory framework for shipboard carbon capture.

Participants including many industry-leading companies including MAN Energy Solutions, Conoship, Heerema Marine Contractors, Anthony Veder, TotalEnergies, SINTEF, Bureau Veritas and Lloyd’s Register as well as TNO which is the project leader.