Solvang to roll out carbon capture on four more vessels

Solvang, whose vessel Clipper Eris was retrofitted with a vast Wärtsilä carbon capture and storage (CCS) system last year, has made an agreement with Seatrium to retrofit CCS devices on four more gas carriers from late 2026.

“Building on the success of the pioneer project together on Clipper Eris... [t]his step will deepen our resolve as strategic partners in supporting maritime decarbonisation efforts,” said Alvin Gan, executive vice president of Repairs and Upgrades, Seatrium.

The CCS system on Clipper Eris is able to sequester CO₂ at a much higher rate by working in concert with an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) system that was already fitted for reasons of NOx reduction, Solvang CEO Edvin Endresen told Ship Repair Newsletter recently.

CCS systems across shipping have managed to capture around 30% of CO₂ while adding as much as 50% additional fuel consumption to power the reaction, but Solvang has managed a 60% carbon capture rate with just a 20% additional fuel consumption – an arrangement which exceeds the efficiency even of land-based powerplant CCS, Endresen explained. “This was just lucky,” he said. “We were not thinking about CCS when we developed the EGR. But with our EGR, the concentration is extremely high, which is how we can get such high percentages.”