The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) has concluded a pilot project in China that demonstrates the feasibility of a full value chain for CO2 capture onboard a ship, including transfer, transport, and industrial utilisation.
The operation was conducted in two phases. The first involved the ship-to-ship transfer of 25.44 metric tonnes of liquefied CO2 (LCO2) from the Evergreen-operated container vessel MV Ever Top to the receiving vessel Dejin 26, near Zhoushan in Zhejiang Province. The CO2 was subsequently offloaded to a tank truck and transported overland to Inner Mongolia. There, it was processed at a joint venture facility operated by GreenOre and Baotou Steel to produce low-carbon calcium carbonate for use in construction materials.
The OCCS unit onboard the Ever Top, developed by Shanghai Qiyao Environmental Technology (SMDERI-QET), a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, captures over 80% of onboard CO2 emissions and delivers CO2 at 99.9% purity. The system enables liquefaction and offloading at sea without the need for specialised port infrastructure.
The trial required regulatory engagement to resolve a classification issue. Under standard regulations, captured CO2 is classified as hazardous waste, which restricts its reuse. GCMD successfully obtained reclassification to hazardous cargo, allowing the material to be repurposed for industrial use. The centre noted that resolving regulatory issues such as this is essential to wider adoption of OCCS technology.
Professor Lynn Loo, GCMD CEO, commented: ‘This pilot marks a major step in demonstrating how onboard captured CO2 can be integrated into the broader circular economy. With a rigorous life cycle assessment underway, we are quantifying the climate impact across the entire value chain to show how OCCS can serve as a meaningful decarbonisation lever—when applied thoughtfully and transparently.’
GCMD is conducting a life cycle assessment to evaluate the greenhouse gas profile of the full pilot, with third-party validation provided by the classification society DNV. Findings from GCMD’s COLOSSUS study indicate that the use of CO2 in concrete manufacturing produces some of the highest emissions reductions across all utilisation pathways.
Dr Su Yi, General Manager of SMDERI-QET, stated: ‘Since the delivery of the first full-process OCCS in early 2024, we have executed two successful ship-to-shore unloading operations and achieved the world’s first CII deduction for vessels. From ship-to-shore unloading to ship-to-ship transfer, we are confident that this milestone – coupled with further advancements in OCCS – will not only accelerate the development of a global network for shore-based carbon storage and utilisation facilities, but also advance the decarbonisation of the shipping industry.’
This pilot builds on a previous collaboration between GCMD, Stena Bulk, and the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, which investigated the retrofitting of an MR tanker with carbon capture technology. That study projected a 20% reduction in emissions reduction at a cost of US$769 per tonne of CO2 abated. The high cost was attributed to energy penalties, consumables, and operational overheads. Further innovation and scaling are considered necessary to reduce these costs.
