Maersk’s container ship Maersk Halifax has been converted into a dual-fuel vessel able to operate on methanol. The retrofit operation was conducted at the Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard in China over 88 days with completion at the end of October 2024. The retrofit contract was announced in October 2023 as part of Maersk’s strategy to achieve net-zero emissions by 2040.
The engine conversion was done by MAN Energy Solutions. Besides replacing machine parts and making the engine able to operate on methanol, the retrofit operation at the yard has involved adding new fuel tanks, fuel preparation room and fuel supply system. The hull has also been expanded to accommodate the fuel tanks. With this change, the length of the ship was extended by 15 meters to 368 meters, increasing the capacity from around 15,000 to 15,690 TEU.
“We are happy to announce that Maersk Halifax successfully has been retrofitted into a dual-fuel methanol vessel. Following the completion of the sea-trials, Maersk Halifax has returned to operation and is now servicing our customers on the Trans-Pacific trade,” said Leonardo Sonzio, Head of Fleet Management and Technology at Maersk.
“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, which is one of 11 vessels in Maersk’s Hong Kong-class, departed anchorage at the yard on 4 November 2024. The company plans to expand its retrofit project to several sister vessels when going for a special survey in 2027. To this end, Maersk has contracted MAN ES to retrofit the engines of a total of 11 vessels equipped with MAN B&W 8G95ME-C9.5 prime movers. In addition, Maersk has 25 dual-fuel methanol-powered newbuilds on order, of which 7 vessels are already in operation.