The world’s first commercial-scale E-methanol, a sustainable fuel, has gone online in Denmark this week, marking a historic shift in the potential fuel sources for the future.
Methanol was the original choice for internal combustion engines, but it was problematic in several areas, so it was slowly but surely replaced by the more energy-dense hydrocarbon we now call Petrol.
A new facility located in Kasso, Southern Denmark, will soon be capable of producing 53 million litres of e-methanol per year, and shipping giant, Maersk, is set to be one of its first customers.
Currently, Maersk operates several ships that can run on e-methanol and has already ordered another 13 to double the size of its low-emission fleet. To put it into perspective, just one ship that can hold about 2000 containers needs some 4.4 million litres of petrol annually to operate.
The drive to convert all vehicles to EVs has left some transport sectors in a dilemma. EVs are just not appropriate for things like Shipping and Aviation. Batteries are too heavy, too expensive, and do not contain enough energy.
The facility will manufacture its product using ethanol harvested from biogas plants and waste incineration. As of now, methanol is more expensive than traditional Industrial Fuel Oils. The owners of the new facility, Denmark’s European Energy and Japan’s Mitsui, do not expect price parity with fossil fuels until about 2035.
There is already a long line of potential customers for sustainable fuel including some household names like Lego and Novo Nordisk (a pharmaceutical company). I would also IMAGINE A NUMBER OF German car manufacturers would also be interested. Particularly Porsche, which has already perfected its technology and is looking to scale up the process.
