The company ERMA FIRST is a Greek ballast water treatment specialist and they have signed a letter of intent (LoI). This LoI is between ERMA FIRST and Capital Gas, who is a compatriot ship management company and Babcock who is a British engineering company.

The purpose of this LoI is for ERMA FIRST to install its carbon capture and storage (CCS) system onboard four new liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carriers. These ships will be delivered by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, a South Korean shipbuilder in 2026. The vessels will be 22,000 cbm LCO2 carriers and the plan is for them to become part of the Capital Gas managed fleet. The order was placed last year in 2022 and it is predicted that transportation of CO2 will soon become a rapidly growing market.

The first CCS system which ERMA FIRST plans to fit, is the CARBON FIT which uses amine absorption technology. This technology is developed from a proprietary amine solvent, which is used to absorb CO2 from flue gases. Once this process is complete, the resultant mix is then heated to produce a chemical reaction, which ultimately reverses the absorption, separating the CO2 from the solvent. After this, the CO2 which has been released is liquefied through the use of Babcock LGE’s-ecoCO2 system and it then goes onto being stored onboard the ship. This storage is pressurized low-temperature storage for subsequent offloading. A benefit of this process is that the regenerated solvent can be re-used, which means that the overall process creates a highly efficient regenerative loop for CCS.

Another benefit for this project is that the CCS system has been awarded the Approval in Principle (AiP) from both Lloyd’s Register and DNV.

Co-Founder & Managing Director, ERMA FIRST, Konstantinos Stampedakis, commented, “This project is a breakthrough not only for ERMA FIRST and our CCS technology but also for shipping’s journey towards low-carbon operations. Under normal conditions, CCS systems are expected to cut vessel CO2 emissions by 15% to 30%. At this specific project the CO2 capture rate will exceed 70%. This will play a significant role in helping Capital Gas to achieve its decarbonisation objectives but also to have the first almost carbon neutral vessels.”

Managing Director, Capital Gas Ship Management, Miltos Zisis, mentioned, “As part of our ongoing efforts to minimize our impact on the environment, but also to actively contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable future, Capital Gas proudly became the world’s first ship manager to supervise the construction of LCO2 carriers. Now, we are taking a step further. Alongside our partners, we are developing advanced carbon capture technology to enhance the environmental sustainability of these ships.”

Managing Director, Babcock LGE, Neale Campbell, said, “The addition of onboard carbon capture to these first-of-a-kind vessels, in conjunction with our industry-defining ecoCO2® system, is a significant step towards achieving the shipping industry’s emissions reduction targets. The ecoCO2® design concept for handling both CO2 and LPG cargoes provides a flexible solution that can easily be upgraded to incorporate carbon capture and storage requirements.”