Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has acquired approval in principle (AiP) for the design of a large-scale liquefied carbon dioxide (CO2) carrier from compatriot classification society Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK).
In June 2021, MOL launched research and development (R&D) on the adoption of a large-scale liquefied CO2 carrier in response to a call for proposals by Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) to complete the conceptual design, under a project entrusted by NEDO to Japan CCS.
The vessel design is one element of NEDO’s “CCUS R&D and Demonstration Related Project/Large-scale CCUS Demonstration Project in Tomakomai/Demonstration Project on CO2 Transportation.”
The large-scale liquefied CO2 carrier is intended as a practical solution to the need for long-distance transport of CO2 on a scale of 1 million tons a year, based on NEDO’s vision to implement CCUS technology.
MOL entered the business of transporting liquefied carbon dioxide in March 2021, when it invested in Larvik Shipping AS which has managed industrial LCO2 carriers in Europe for over 30 years.
The company intends to further accelerate its initiative on liquefied CO 2 transport through R&D in the aforementioned demonstration project as the project fully supports MOL’s goal of achieving net zero GHG emissions by 2050.
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