[Eco-Asia] Hanwha Ocean to Enter Decarbonized Shipping, who captures a hill?

Hanwha Ocean “To build a zero-emission gas carrier”

Dong Kwan KIM, the Vice Chairman of the Hanwha Group in South Korea, appeared at the Davos Forum in Switzerland on 17th January 2024. 

The Davos Forum is a World Economic Forum that is held every year in Switzerland. The stories that emerge from Davos are the guiding light for the global economy.

Vice Chairman Kim, donning an orange tie, which is the emblematic color of Hanwha, articulated his vision for maritime decarbonization during the forum.

Hanwha Group entered the shipping industry last year through the acquisition of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering became Hanwha Ocean.

So, what is his maritime decarbonization strategy?

According to Hanwha Ocean officials, the goal is to establish an eco-friendly shipping company with the aim of successfully demonstrating the world’s first zero-emission gas carrier. 

The company emphasized its objective to demonstrate the implementation of green technology on its vessels through its own fleet, as it is challenging to identify a pioneer in implementing and utilizing novel technologies within the shipping industry.

Mr. Kim proposed at the Davos Forum a carbon-free gas carrier that uses 100% green fuel and can also be propelled by electricity as a maritime decarbonization solution.

Hanwha is currently working on a gas turbine powered by 100% ammonia and featuring carbon-free technology.

Furthermore, the company intends to install hydrogen fuel cells and energy storage systems as supplementary power generation devices on ships in order to achieve carbon-free electrification.

However, the group hasn’t yet come up with a concrete strategy for establishing a shipping firm to accomplish this.

Global shipping’s biggest buzzword is ‘decarbonization’…who captures a hill first?

Shipping is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions. As per the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), aviation and shipping currently account for 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions. However, it is possible that this figure could rise to 17% as the volume of goods traded continues to increase.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has pledged to reduce its carbon footprint by 50% by 2050.

Furthermore, two of the world’s shipping giants, France’s CMA CGM and Denmark’s Maersk, have announced a joint effort to accelerate decarbonization.

The most crucial aspect of reducing carbon emissions in the shipping industry is the utilization of environmentally friendly fuels. Maersk has already started its first container ship that uses bio-methanol as fuel.

CMA CGM has a fleet of LNG-powered ships that can also be fueled by biomethane and e-methane.

But LNG remains a controversial topic. “LNG is a gas, and gas is a fossil fuel, and it is composed of methane, a dangerous greenhouse gas,” said François Gemenne, a researcher and co-author of the latest IPCC report.

Meanwhile, the companies said that while these two fuels currently appear to be the most advanced existing solutions, they expect the future energy mix used in shipping to include other fuels that will be developed over the coming years.

The world’s two largest European shipping companies have joined hands in the quest for decarbonized ships.

With the collaboration between the two giants, it will be intriguing to observe whether Hanwha Ocean’s venture into decarbonized shipping will prove to be a just dream or a small giant.