Press

2022 was an extraordinary year, as the Covid pandemic finally began to recede, and the methanol industry moved to seize the unique opportunity presented by methanol’s rise to prominence as a preferred marine fuel of the future. One of the highlights thus far at the start of 2023 was an article headline in the Wall Street Journal, which proclaimed, “Methanol Takes Lead in Shipping’s Quest for Green Fuel,” this further supports the lobbying efforts the Methanol Institute has been pursuing for the last 8 years to educate the shipping industry of methanol’s use as a marine fuel.

MI is pleased to welcome Ørsted as our newest member. Ørsted develops, constructs, and operates offshore and onshore wind farms, solar farms, energy storage facilities, renewable hydrogen and green fuels facilities, and bioenergy plants. Headquartered in Denmark, and with a global presence across Northern Europe, North America, and APAC, Ørsted employs approximately 8,000 people.

The Methanol Institute is pleased to welcome Carbon-Neutral Consulting LLC (CNC) as the association’s newest member company. CNC provides business strategy counsel to companies faced with opportunities and challenges related to the energy transition.

CNC grew out of the Clinton Climate Initiative’s Simple Molecules Program, which undertook pioneering work in the early 2010s that focused on methanol, dimethyl ether, and ammonia as climate-friendly hydrogen carriers.

Marine design and engine developer ScandiNAOS AB, Chalmers University of Technology and the Swedish Maritime Administration (SMA) have launched a project to develop dual-fuel kits for conversion of new and existing diesel engines to methanol operation.

The methanol dual-fuel kit is unique since it will be generic and possible to fit to a large range of existing diesel engines of different brands. The kit will target engines up to 1000 kW and will accelerate the transition to low emission fuel and sustainable operations for marine and industrial applications.

Leading companies from across Europe’s fuel production chain have joined with NGOs to press the European Union’s legislators to provide the clarity and certainty they need to make long term investments in the renewable fuels required for the clean energy transition.

In a letter to the EU Council, Parliament and Commission, 47 entities, representing the entire value chain of green fuels including suppliers, users and maritime technology providers, have called for the maintenance of the proposed 2% sub quota of renewable fuels of non biological origin with the final text of FuelEU Maritime and its application to all shipping companies.

The Methanol Institute has appointed Rafik Ammar as Manager of Government and Public Affairs Europe, serving in the Brussels office for the methanol industry’s global trade association. In his role for MI, Mr. Ammar will apply his expertise in the European legislative process to support the association’s government relations strategy in Europe, leading stakeholder engagements to effectively share the perspectives of the methanol sector with policymakers.

MI is pleased to welcome European Energy as our newest member. European Energy develops, finances, constructs and operates wind and solar farms as well as large-scale Power-to-X (PtX) plants. Based in Copenhagen, Denmark, the company has a strong track record of developing projects in 26 countries. Founded in 2004, European Energy has a development pipeline of more than 40 GW of renewable energy projects and is currently constructing more than 1 GW of new energy capacity annually.

MI has released an interactive map on its website (www.methanol.org/renewable/) tracking more than 80 renewable methanol projects around the globe that are projected to produce more than eight million metric tons (2.7 billion gallons or 10 billion liters) per year of e-methanol and bio-methanol by 2027. Curated by the MI team based on publicly announced projects, the database provides a novel look at the anticipated growth of renewable methanol production.

MI is pleased to welcome Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (Norwegian) as our newest member. Norwegian is a leading global cruise company that operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. The company has a combined fleet of 29 ships that offer itineraries to approximately 500 destinations worldwide and a robust pipeline of eight additional ships on order through 2027.

MI has welcomed comments made by the chairmen of China Merchants Energy Shipping and COSCO Shipping Bulk, that the two companies will focus on Methanol marine fuel as their primary area of research in the future.

CMES chairman Xie Chunlin and Gu Jinsong, Chairman of COSCO Shipping Bulk made the comments in a meeting held in late August, during which the two reviewed the co-operation between their companies and exchanged views on the shipping industry’s low-carbon transformation.

MI announced that Matthías Ólafsson has been appointed Chief EU Representative of the trade association effective immediately. In his new role, Mr. Ólafsson will provide strategic vision and functional expertise in overseeing MI’s government and public affairs in Europe. He will lead stakeholder relations and the association’s undertaking to represent a strong voice for the methanol sector among policymakers in Brussels. Matthías succeeds Eelco Dekker who had served as MI’s Chief EU Representative since 2014.

The Methanol Institute (MI) and FASTWATER have released a video highlighting the benefits of Methanol as a marine fuel for small craft operating in ports and inshore waters. The film highlights the launch in late 2021 of the first pilot boat operated by the Swedish Maritime Administration converted to run on methanol by the FASTWATER consortium. The conversion is the first of a potential fleet conversion by the SMA, adopting Methanol to lower pollution and cut carbon emissions.

MI, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly drive the use of methanol as an alternative fuel for different applications and promote sustainable pathways of methanol production in India. Methanol, which has been on the government’s agenda since 2016, is a strategic product that presents an opportunity for India to achieve the 2070 net-zero vision and ensure energy security.

MI is pleased to welcome Alfa Laval as a new member of the association. Headquartered in Sweden, Alfa Laval has been supplying equipment and services to the marine industry for over a century and is active in the areas of Energy, Marine, and Food & Water, offering its expertise, products, and service to a wide range of industries in some 100 countries. The company is committed to optimizing processes, creating responsible growth, and driving progress – always going the extra mile to support customers in achieving their business goals and sustainability targets.

MI is pleased to welcome Air Company as our newest member. Air Company is a carbon technology company based in New York that ideates and creates products for the future. Launched in 2019, they have invented a scalable Carbon Conversion Reactor that runs on 100% renewable energy to convert captured carbon dioxide (CO2) into impurity-free, carbon-negative alcohols, with oxygen and water as the only byproducts. The technology mimics photosynthesis in a more efficient manner and only requires three inputs; air (CO2), water, and sun (renewable energy).

MI is pleased to welcome ControlRooms as our newest member company. ControlRooms is the AI-powered monitoring and collaboration tool for critical infrastructure. Its SaaS application is used by chemical plants to reduce unplanned outages by monitoring plant operations in real-time and facilitating troubleshooting among operations, engineering, reliability, security and business teams.

The Methanol Institute is pleased to welcome Aker Clean Hydrogen as our newest member company. Based in Norway, Aker Clean Hydrogen develops, builds, owns, and operates clean hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol facilities globally to solve industrial climate challenges within hard-to-abate sectors. Aker Clean Hydrogen’s industrial target is to reach 5 GW net installed capacity by the end of this decade.

The Methanol Institute is hosting a webinar titled Methanol’s role in India’s Energy Mix on April 12, 2022 at 1400 hrs (IST). The webinar will feature speakers from NITI Aayog-Government of India, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), and Argus Media who will discuss the policy initiatives, opportunities for the methanol industry, and the potential role of methanol in the country’s energy transition and ensuring energy security.

During a virtual meeting held today, the Methanol Institute’s Board of Directors elected Anita Gajadhar, Managing Director Marketing and Logistics for Proman, as their new Board Chair. Ms. Gajadhar takes over the Board Chair role from Kevin Struve of OCI N.V., who served as MI Board Chair for the past three years.

MI is pleased to welcome Glocal Green as our newest member company. Norway’s Glocal Green produces bio-e-methanol by utilizing residual raw materials such as logging residues and/or other industrial waste not good enough to be used in commercial products. Glocal Green’s first concept phase will concentrate on tops, branches, and other residues from logging, sawmill waste, demolition wood and, eventually, fish-farming sludge, agricultural waste, and other biomass which would otherwise be discarded or left to rot.

MI is pleased to welcome Silent- Power AG as a new member to the association. Silent-Power is an innovative Swiss SMC focusing on the introduction of a CO2 neutral energy economy based on emission-free green or synthetic Methanol.
Silent-Power develops power plants, outdoor heaters, and mobile energy solutions, as well as further innovative machines operating on synthetic methanol.

MI is pleased to welcome SunHydro, Inc. as our newest member company. SunHydro is a global leader in providing methanol-based hydrogen energy solutions, including hydrogen gas provisioning and hydrogen-electricity power facilities. SunHydro’s products range from HRS-in-a-container supported by methanol-reforming, methanol/hydrogen power station/mini-grid, exchangeable-canister-type hydrogen vehicles with 2- 3- 4- wheelers supported by methanol-reforming hydrogen refilling system, etc.

MI is pleased to welcome TotalEnergies Marine Fuels as our newest member company. TotalEnergies Marine Fuels is global, multi-energy company TotalEnergies’ dedicated business unit in charge of worldwide bunkering activities.

MI is pleased to welcome Evos as the association’s newest member company. Evos is a European tank storage platform, featuring 6.3 million cubic meters of storage capacity divided over 8 terminals in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Terneuzen, Ghent, Hamburg, Algeciras and Malta.

The Methanol Institute is hosting a webinar titled: Full Steam Ahead: Methanol and Maritime Policy Under EU’s Fit for 55″ on February 15, 2022, 1400 HRS (CEST). The webinar will feature speakers from global shipping company Mærsk, methanol producer Proman, and the European Parliament. They will share their vision on the regulatory landscape taking shape for alternative marine fuels in Europe and the potential role of methanol in the energy transition of European shipping.

In December 2015, policymakers from 175 countries came together in Paris to negotiate a historic treaty that set up a global framework to avoid climate change and limit global warming to 1.5°C. The Paris Agreement is the first universal, legally binding global climate change agreement. Although the EU has taken its commitment seriously, cutting GHG emissions by 23% compared to 1990 levels by 2018, EU policymakers sought to move further, towards carbon neutrality, and to transform the EU into a sustainable and yet competitive economy.

MI is pleased to welcome Vertoro as the association’s newest member company. Vertoro produce a sustainable methanol drop-in fuel and chemical building block from agricultural and forestry residues which is branded Goldilocks^®.

The EU’s Fit for 55 agenda can be an opportunity for progress on shipping emissions and the catalyst for greater availability of alternative marine fuels – but the EU must support the industry during the transition, writes Matthias Ólafsson of The Methanol Institute.

The Methanol Institute is hosting a webinar titled Fit for 55: Power-to-X in Europe´s Energy Transition. The webinar will feature speakers from the eFuel Alliance, Liquid Wind, and CEFIC. They will elaborate on the implications of the Fit for 55 package for the production of fuels and chemicals sourced from renewable electricity (RFNBOs) and their allotted role in the energy transition of industry and mobility.

MI is pleased to welcome Danaos Shipping as the association’s newest member company. Danaos is an international provider of seaborne transportation services and one of the world’s leading providers of containership operations.

MI is pleased to welcome ABEL Energy as our newest member company. ABEL Energy is proposing to build and operate a series of green hydrogen and methanol projects throughout Australia, using the country’s abundant solar and wind energy resources. When carbon is required as an input, ABEL Energy will use CO2 extracted directly or indirectly from the air, not carbon from the ground.

MI is pleased to welcome Casale SA as the association’s newest member company. Casale is a global provider of integrated solutions for the production of fertilizers, methanol and other base chemicals. The company, established in 1921, is a privately-owned Swiss company, with headquarters in Lugano (Switzerland).

MI recently launched the India Methanol Economy Coalition (IMEC), a first-of-its-kind coalition in India to promote the adoption of methanol as an energy product in India. IMEC brings together diverse stakeholders around a common goal of augmenting the methanol economy.

Methanol Institute expresses the association’s full support for the European Commission’s proposed revision of the Energy Taxation Directive under the Fit for 55 packages. The central feature of the revision introduced in July is the restructuring of EU taxation of fuels to reflect actual energy content and environmental performance, rather than volumetric weight.