Shanghai Demonstrates Ship-to-Ship Transfer for Captured CO2

The Port of Shanghai was the location for the first demonstration of a ship-to-ship transfer of CO2 captured from a large Evergreen containership during its operations. According to the Chinese officials, it was a key advancement in the efforts to develop CO2 capture for in-service vessels to meet emission regulations.

The operation took place on June 19 at the Yangshan Deepwater Port’s Shengdong Terminal, where the Ever Top (152,300 dwt) was docked for container handling. The vessel was retrofitted in 2024 by China State Shipbuilding (CSSC) with a CO2 capture system designed by Shanghai Marine Diesel Research Institute. The Ever Top was fitted with an absorption module, a regeneration module, compression refrigeration, and storage. According to the reports, it can capture over 80 percent of CO2 emissions with 99.9 percent purity, and it is then stored aboard the vessel until being offloaded in port.

The offloading and storage component is cited as one of the challenges to making shipboard CO2 capture economical and practical. In the past, the vessel has offloaded to trucks, and in May 2024, a tank was offloaded from the vessel. This process is slower and more cumbersome, and limited to where it can be conducted.

A barge vessel, De Jin, similar to a bunker barge was positioned alongside the docked containership for the transfer. Chinese authorities report it was the first ship-to-ship transfer from a CO2capture system.

Among the advantages they highlight is a greater capacity than the trucks and greater flexibility where the CO2 can be offloaded. Using STS, they report addresses bottlenecks and will be significantly cheaper than land transport for the captured CO2.

The CO2 once captured from the vessel’s operations and transferred to shore is designated for reuse in a broad range of industrial applications. The Chinese authorities contend it could also become a source of income for a vessel, with the possibility of generating up to $8 million per year from the sale of the CO2.

CO2 capture is seen as an economical step for retrofitting in-service vessels to extend their service life in the face of emerging emissions regulations. Evergreen reported spending about $10 million to retrofit the Ever Top with the onboard system, far less than the cost of a new vessel or converting the ship to operate on alternative fuels.