Alfa Laval to supply FSS for methanol retrofit

Maersk is to install an Alfa Laval fuel supply system (FSS) as part of the methanol retrofit project on board the Maersk Halifax, a 15,000-TEU container ship. Alfa Laval will support the container line’s retrofit with the installation of FCM Methanol, a low-flashpoint FSS.

The project is scheduled for mid-2024 and will enable Maersk Halifax to operate on green methanol. The vessel will have dual-fuel capability.

Alfa Laval holds a unique position in the methanol FSS segment. It has experience of the installation and operation of a methanol FSS since 2015 and now holds contracts for the supply of methanol FSS for 80 ships.  It is the only system that has been powering methanol-fuelled ships so far, with over 450,000 hours of operation, the company said.

Alfa Laval’s Viktor Friberg, head of Marine Separation & Fuel Supply Systems, said: “At Alfa Laval, we collaborate with the industry frontrunners in exploring and embracing innovative ways for decarbonisation.  The project with Maersk gives us a unique opportunity to take up a new challenge – retrofitting our equipment for methanol use, for the first time. We are immensely proud to extend our expertise to this innovative retrofit project.”

Ole Graa Jakobsen, head of Fleet Technology at A.P. Møller-Maersk, commented: “We have set an ambitious net-zero emissions target for 2040, and retrofitting of engines on our vessels to run on methanol is an important nut in our strategy. Retrofitting solutions to accommodate new fuel thereby enabling the engine to operate on methanol is a complex task that requires expertise, and we are happy to have Alfa Laval on board on this project.”