Maersk concludes dual-fuel methanol conversion on large containership

A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk)’s containership, Maersk Halifax, has been converted to a dual-fuel vessel capable of running on methanol.

The retrofit operation took 88 days at China’s Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard and was completed by the end of October 2024.

Leonardo Sonzio, Head of Fleet Management and Technology at Maersk, said: “Following the completion of the sea-trials, Maersk Halifax has returned to operation and is now servicing our customers on the Transpacific trade.”

The engine modification was completed by MAN Energy Solutions. Aside from repairing machine parts and converting the engine to run on methanol, the yard’s refit operation included installing new fuel tanks, a fuel preparation room, and a fuel delivery system.

The hull has also been enlarged to accommodate the fuel tanks. With this alteration, the ship’s length was increased by 15 metres to 368 metres, boosting its capacity from about 15,000 to 15,690 TEUs.

Sonzio added: “Since we set the ambitious climate goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2040, we have explored the potential in retrofitting existing vessels with dual-fuel engines.

“In the coming year, we will take learnings from this first conversion of a large vessel.Retrofits of existing vessels can be an important alternative to newbuilds in our transition from fossil fuels to low-emission fuels.”

Maersk Halifax, one of 11 vessels of Maersk’s Hong Kong class, departed the yard on 4 November 2024.

Recently, Maersk discovered that three out of four European shippers have suffered supply chain interruption in the previous 12 months, with more than half having major financial implications.