Brokers and shipyards are fielding more and more enquiries about potential CO2 carrier orders, according to Clarksons.

But the UK shipbroker said many of these do not constitute firm interest.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is growing in importance for decarbonisation efforts.

The broker said data is partly incomplete and occasionally inconsistent.

But estimates indicate the world is producing emissions of more than 35bn tonnes of CO₂ each year, while storing only around 0.1% of this.

There could already be about 200 CCS projects globally, but only around 30 of those, located in Europe and Asia, are reasonably well-known and attracting attention, the broker explained.

And most of these are established around existing offshore pipeline networks and may not initially require shipping services.

“Having said this, once the project infrastructure is in place, many of them are expected to provide shipping opportunities for CO₂ transported from other emitting regions,” Clarksons said.

Other lesser-known CCS projects have limited or no pipeline networks, meaning they will rely entirely on shipping from the outset.

“Here at Clarksons, we’re already aware of several enquiries circulating for multiple vessels,” the London shop said.

Speculative or not?

“It is important, however, to distinguish between speculative and firm enquiries with charterers or buyers who are in a position to conclude contracts,” it added.

The company believes the majority are not yet at the stage where they can be considered firm enquiries.

“In most cases this is because the related projects do not yet have 100% secure funding and/or there is still some uncertainty about the most appropriate shipping solution,” Clarksons said.

The broker is determined to build on its gas expertise and take a slice of this market.

This month, Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) and US energy giant Chevron said they will study the feasibility of shipping liquid CO2 from Singapore to Australia.

The two companies said they will explore the technical and commercial feasibility of initially transporting up to 2.5m tonnes per year of liquified CO2 by 2030.

Hundreds of ships needed

Observers believe hundreds of such carriers will be needed in future to transport the greenhouse gas to storage sites.

Peter Livanos-backed EcoLog recently announced plans for a fleet of 60 CO2 carriers and a network of terminals.

In June, Hyundai Glovis announced it was teaming up with compatriot shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries Group to develop a 74,000-cbm CO2 carrier.