Wärtsilä predicts green methanol will become key fuel in de-carbonisation
Propulsion specialists, Wärtsilä, have predicted that there will be a strong take-up of green methanol as the industry pushes towards de-carbonisation.
Top executive at Wärtsilä say green methanol has great potential as an alternative fuel source. Although methanol derived from natural gas is a high-carbon option, synthetic methanol made from green hydrogen or biomass would be a low-carbon choice.
“We have had an engine running on methanol since 2015,” said Roger Holm, President Marine Power & EVP, Wärtsilä Corporation. “The technology is already there for day-to-day use. . . . From our perspective, this is the [low-carbon] fuel we may see moving fastest.”
Wärtsilä already has a methanol-fuelled engine and Juha Kytölä, Wärtsilä’s director of R&D says vessels can already be built that can transition to methanol and other alternative fuels, thereby helping owners make a low-risk transition to green fuels.
