Japan-based shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line) has entered into bareboat and time charter contracts with Northern Lights for two 7,500 m3 liquefied carbon dioxide ships currently under construction in China.
This November, China’s Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co. started the construction of the two LNG-powered, wind-assisted CO2 ships for Northern Lights, which is a joint venture of energy majors Shell, Equinor, and TotalEnergies.
Relevant: Chinese Shipbuilder To Provide Liquefied CO2 Carriers For Northern Lights
The ships – set to be delivered in 2024 – will load captured and liquefied carbon dioxide from emitters in Europe, including the Norcem Brevik and Hafslund Oslo Celsio carbon capture sites, and transport it to the Northern Lights receiving terminal in Øygarden, Norway.
The captured carbon would be transported by pipeline to be stored permanently in a geological reservoir 2,600 meters below the sea. Operations for the facilities, which are currently under construction, are scheduled to begin in 2024. Their starting capacity is up to 1.5 million tons of carbon annually, with the potential to expand to more than five million tons annually during the second development phase.
Read more: Northern Lights Signs Its First Commercial And First Ever Cross-Border CO2 Transport Deal
