First ship-to-ship CO₂ transfer marks decarbonisation milestone
Ever Top’s CCS can capture 80% of flue gas carbon, exceeding regulatory requirements /Source: CSSC)
The Port of Shanghai achieved a global first in maritime decarbonisation with a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of liquefied CO₂, captured directly from the exhaust of commercial container vessel Ever Top by a retrofitted carbon capture and storage (CCS) system.
About 25 tonnes of 99.9% pure CO₂ were transferred from the 14,000 TEU Evergreen vessel, offloaded to the nearby CO₂ carrier De Jin at Yangshan Deepwater Port’s Shengdong Terminal.
The operation used no pipelines or fixed port infrastructure, instead relying on flexible STS offloading in open water. The Ever Top’s system captures more than 80% of its carbon emissions, converting exhaust into a marketable by-product. According to project estimates, captured CO₂ repurposed for industrial use could generate up to USD 8 million per ship annually.
“For scaled operations, ship-to-ship transfer offers clear advantages … it is significantly cheaper than land transport and much more efficient,” said Du Mingsai, project manager. “A single CO2 carrier is able to handle dozens or even hundreds of times more volume than a tanker truck.”
The high-efficiency CCS system was retrofitted at Huarun Dadong Shipyard in Shanghai early last year. The breakthrough forms part of Shanghai’s full-chain ecosystem for capture, transfer, transport and reuse of CO₂, setting a scalable benchmark for ports and fleets pursuing IMO-aligned climate targets.
