GCMD successfully demonstrates world’s first end-to-end value chain for onboard captured CO2

The Singapore-based Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation has successfully completed the world’s first maritime pilot demonstrating the full value chain of onboard captured carbon dioxide (CO2) in China last week.

The pilot encompassed two phases. In the first phase, Shanghai Qiyao Environmental Technology Co., Ltd. (SMDERI-QET) conducted a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of 25.44 metric tons (MT) of captured CO2 from the container vessel MV Ever Top to the receiving vessel Dejin 26. The CO2 was subsequently offloaded from Dejin 26 to a tank truck at a jetty in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province.

The second phase, led by GCMD, involved transporting the captured CO2 to its end- use destination: a joint venture plant between GreenOre and Baotou Steel in Inner Mongolia. There, the LCO2 was successfully used in the production of low-carbon calcium carbonate, a key component in sustainable construction materials.

This cross-sectoral demonstration highlights how captured CO2 from ships can be repurposed for industrial applications, linking maritime decarbonisation efforts with broader land-based carbon ecosystem.

Using captured CO2 in concrete production offers one of the higher GHG emissions savings among current utilisation pathways, as it partially displaces the need for carbon-intensive cement production ashore. This finding is based on GCMD’s COLOSSUS study, which evaluated life cycle emissions of onboard captured CO2 across various sequestration and utilisation pathways.

 Professor Lynn Loo, CEO of GCMD, said: “We are proud to leverage our role as a neutral convener to bring together stakeholders from various sectors to address the technical and operational challenges of offloading and utilisation of CO2 captured onboard vessels. This pilot marks a major step in demonstrating how onboard captured CO2 can be integrated into the broader circular economy.

“With a rigorous life cycle assessment underway, we are quantifying the climate impact across the entire value chain to show how OCCS can serve as a meaningful decarbonisation lever—when applied thoughtfully and transparently.”