Northern Lights JV pens charter deal for LNG-powered CO2 carrier
SUMMARY
This newly chartered vessel will be the fourth in line, joining sister ships currently under construction at China’s Dalian Shipbuilding Offshore Co. [Image: Northern Lights JV]
By Shardul SharmaThe Northern Lights joint venture, consisting of energy giants Shell, Equinor, and TotalEnergies, has signed a time charter deal with shipping company Bernhard Schulte for an LNG-powered CO2 carrier, it said on December 14.
This newly chartered vessel will be the fourth in line, joining sister ships currently under construction at China’s Dalian Shipbuilding Offshore Co. Following commercial agreements with Orsted and Yara for CO2 transportation and storage, Northern Lights had already placed an order for a third vessel in September of this year.
With the chartering of a fourth vessel from Bernhard Schulte, Northern Lights is significantly expanding its shipping capacity to meet the growing demand for CO2 transportation services to its commercial customers.
Designed with a cargo capacity of 7,500 m3 and custom-built for the transport of liquefied CO2, these vessels will play a role in transporting CO2 from Northern Lights' customers across Northwest Europe to the CO2 receiving terminal at Oygarden, Norway, before the gas undergoes permanent geological storage.
The primary fuel for the ships will be LNG. Combined with other proven technologies, such as wind-assisted rotor sail and air lubrication, the ships will have around 34% lower carbon footprint compared to conventional ships running on marine fuel, the joint venture said.
The joint venture earlier this month secured €131mn ($141mn) in funding from the European Commission under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) scheme.
