First green methanol bunkering operation completed in HK

The "CM HONG KONG," the world's first large-scale roll-on/roll-off vessel equipped with a methanol dual-fuel engine system, completed its inaugural green methanol bunkering operation in Hong Kong on Thursday.

In support of the national "dual carbon" strategy and Hong Kong's development as an international maritime centre, China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES), Sinopec (Hong Kong) and China International Marine Containers Group (CIMC) collaborated to make a solid step forward by launching the bunkering operation.

A ceremony marking Hong Kong's inaugural green methanol bunkering was held at the Legislative Council Complex on Thursday, with over a hundred representatives from the shipping, energy, equipment manufacturing, and financial industries in attendance. During the ceremony, a live screen broadcast the first injection of green methanol into the CM HONG KONG.

The vessel completed the bunkering operation via a ship-to-ship transfer, receiving approximately 500 tonnes of green methanol, the largest single volume of green methanol bunkered by a domestic shipowner to date.

Compared with conventional marine fuels, the volume is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 85 percent.

Officiating at the ceremony, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan noted that Hong Kong has now joined the ranks of world-class shipping hubs with routine liquefied natural gas (LNG) and biodiesel operations, and the next step will focus on green methanol as a key development area.

She said the city has completed 16 LNG bunkering operations and 110 biodiesel bunkering operations in the past year, involving a total of 220,000 tonnes of green marine fuel.

Chan stated that the mainland will become a major global producer of green marine fuel and Hong Kong —  leveraging its unique advantages of being backed by the motherland and connected to the world — can combine the supply chains and bunkering services of various companies to build a green fuel bunkering and trading center.