Crowley to pilot Carbon Ridge carbon capture on containership

Rendering of small capacity version of Carbon Ridge’s full-scale carbon capture system aboard Crowley's Storm containership.

Back in September 2022, Crowley was among the companies contributing to a funding round that raised $6 million for Los Angeles based onboard carbon capture and storage start-up Carbon Ridge Inc. Now, with support from MARAD’s Maritime Environmental and Technical Assistance (META) program, Crowley and Carbon Ridge have initiated an advanced, pilot project to reduce emissions impacts using the Crowley containership Storm, which serves the U.S. and the Caribbean Basin.

The companies and MARAD have executed a cooperative agreement for the pilot program to operate, measure and optimize the Carbon Ridge technology’s effectiveness in actual maritime environments at port and ultimately at sea. The collaboration includes the engineering, manufacturing and integration of a small capacity version of Carbon Ridge’s full-scale carbon capture system.

“The advancement of the pilot project represents a milestone in the emerging technology for carbon capture,” said Chase Dwyer, CEO, Carbon Ridge. “With its potential for significant emissions reductions through retrofitting or during newbuilding, ship owners and operators have the opportunity to future-proof their vessels for incoming regulations, as well as reach internal goals for decarbonization and reduced emissions impacts

Crowley’s engineering services group is leading the integration of the pilot system on the Storm. The carbon capture system will be housed in two 40-foot container units on the vessel’s main deck and have an additional 20-foot ISO-certified tank for storing the captured liquid CO2. The pilot project is expected to capture one tonne ot carbon per day from the vessel’s main engine.

“We are excited to help spearhead the maritime industry’s journey to cleaner operations at sea and in our communities,” said Brett Bennett, senior vice president and general manager, Crowley Logistics. “This is a strong step forward to understanding and achieving our commitment to reaching net-zero emissions as part of our sustainability strategy.”

“MARAD is pleased to work with industry partners through META to demonstrate innovative technology applications that may lead to greater greenhouse gas emission reductions in the maritime sector,” said Daniel Yuska, director of the MARAD Office of Environment and Innovation.

Installation of the pilot unit on the vessel is expected in 2024, after completion of onshore testing.