Ulsan Hosts First Ship-To-Ship Methanol Bunkering Operation

The Korean Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Ulsan Port Authority have announced a world first with the completion of a ship-to-ship (STS) bunkering of green methanol to the 16,000 TEU container ship Ane Maersk at Ulsan Port, South Korea.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries established the relevant institutional foundation, including the ‘Guidelines for Approval of Self-Safety Management Plan for Methanol Supply’ and accumulated know-how through two methanol supply demonstrations with Ulsan Port Authority in July and November last year.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Ulsan Port Authority will continue to upgrade related systems, such as establishing standard operating procedures for the supply of methanol, and will also continue to work with the private sector to secure the economics of sustainable marine fuel supply.

“Competition among international ports to pre-empt the market by building ports that supply sustainable marine fuel is accelerating,” said Kang Do-Hyung, the Minister of Oceans and Fisheries. “Under the goal of achieving net-zero by 2050 in the global shipping sector, we will make all-out efforts to strengthen competitiveness so that Korea can lead the global trend of switching to sustainable fuels.”

Kim Jae-gyun, the president of Ulsan Port Authority, said: “We will do our best to proactively respond to the paradigm shift in ship fuel so that Ulsan Port can be reborn as a hub port for sustainable marine fuel supply.”