Europe’s first green methanol feeder network is in the works

MOA between X-Press Feeders and Evergreen opens path to first green methanol feeder network [Photo:X-Press Feeders]

Back in July last year, Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corporation bet big on methanol as the green fuel to go with, placing orders for 24 green methanol dual fueled 16,000 TEU containerships, split between two Asian shipyards. But containers don’t just move on giant box, they also move on feeder ships and now Evergreen has reached an agreement that will help create a European green methanol feeder network. It has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with X-Press Feeders, the world’s largest independent feeder containership operators, to place its containers on the new dual fuel green methanol 1,250 TEU feeder vessels on order in China for X-Press Feeders.

X-Press Feeders is hailing the agreement with Evergreen, one of the world’s largest container shipping companies and a key X-Press Feeders customer, as “a significant statement of leadership in a sustainable green future.”

It says that the two companies will work together to launch a feeder network that will be the first in Europe to be powered by green methanol.

Initially, the dual fuel ships will be centered at the Port of Rotterdam and covering ports in the Baltic Sea and Scandinavia. Ultimately, the 14 dual fuel ships that X-Press Feeders has on order for delivery from second quarter 2024 through mid-2026 will be operated within Europe and the Mediterranean.

Creating a green methanol feeder network requires green methanol and X-Press feeders has already signed a firm contract with Dutch fuel supplier OCI Global for the supply of green methanol that is ISCC-EU (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) certified. Also known as bio-methanol, the fuel is a renewable energy source produced from the decomposition of organic matter, such as waste and residues.

The decision to add dual-fuel vessels powered by green methanol is a key element of X-Press Feeders’ pledge to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) by 20% by 2035, 50% by 2040 and be net zero by 2050.

“We are pioneering the use of dual-fuel vessels and we decided to take delivery of our vessels sooner, rather than later, because we know we need to take significant steps today to meet the targets for reductions in GHG emissions,” says Francis Goh, X-Press Feeders’ COO. “Our two companies are encouraging port operators, fuel suppliers, logistics companies, freight-forwarders and beneficial cargo owners (BCOs), etc to join us on the path to more sustainable shipping. By working together, step by step, we can achieve so much more.”