Wärtsilä’s engines for carbon-free and low-carbon fuels shape the future
To limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, switching to sustainable fuels across industries is one of the necessary steps to be taken. There is a wide range of potential future fuels from green hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol to biofuels that can help phase out and eventually fully replace fossil fuels.
Wärtsilä – a global leader in innovative technologies for the marine and energy markets – has been developing engine solutions for sustainable fuels for decades.
“We were the first company to start both developing and commercialising multiple next-generation engines for the new carbon-free and low-carbon fuels. And thanks to our Sustainable Technology Hub (STH) that was inaugurated in 2022 in Vaasa, we now have an even better opportunity to research future fuels that help decarbonise the planet”, states Mikael Wideskog, Director of Sustainable Fuels & Decarbonisation at Wärtsilä.
The first of Wärtsilä’s new solutions for sustainable fuels, a methanol engine, entered the market in 2022. Although biomethanol is not a completely carbon-free fuel, it still helps lower emissions significantly compared to traditional fuels.
The same goes for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and bio-LNG that have been gaining popularity in the marine industry. Over 30 years ago, Wärtsilä launched natural gas engines for power plants and 15 years later for the marine sector. The marine engines use gasified LNG, stored onboard the ship.
“Like methanol, LNG and bio-LNG are far more sustainable choices than conventional fossil fuels, such as diesel and heavy fuel oil, but still contain carbon. Hence, they are not the final solution”, Wideskog points out.
As completely carbon-free fuels, green hydrogen and ammonia are seen as the most potential options for future fuels at the moment. In 2023, Wärtsilä launched its first ammonia engine.
“Both this and the new methanol engine are multifuel – allowing customers to flexibly switch between fuels depending on their availability. If ammonia or biomethanol are not available, fossil fuels can be used in their stead.”
Wideskog remarks that ammonia is the best zero-carbon fuel for the marine industry. Although ammonia requires a tank almost four times larger than diesel, it is still an acceptable size for a vessel.
While ammonia suits marine vessels as a future fuel, hydrogen is the sought-after solution on land. Since the energy density of hydrogen is low and the required tank size is much larger compared to that of diesel and ammonia, hydrogen is especially suitable for power plants using fuel delivered by pipelines.
“Of course, hydrogen could still be utilised in short-distance ships and ferries. There is also the possibility to liquefy hydrogen to make the tanks smaller, but it is very expensive”, Wideskog says.
It was 2016 when Wärtsilä started developing a hydrogen engine. The first version still ran primarily on natural gas, with a small portion of hydrogen added in. However, the ultimate goal was to innovate a technology that required only hydrogen.
“We will reach this goal in 2025, when the development of our first 100 percent hydrogen engine is finalised. This has sparked interest especially among natural gas power plants looking to decarbonise.”
The transition to future fuels does not depend solely on technology, but also on legislation and regulation. A big step forward was taken in 2024, when the marine industry became part of the Fit for 55 legislative package that aims to reduce the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent by 2030 when compared to the levels in 1990.
The package brings new regulations to the marine industry. One of them is the FuelEU Maritime that requires all vessels of 5,000 gross tonnage and above to start reducing the GHG intensity of their fuels.
“In 2025, ships need to decrease their GHG intensity by two percent. The reductions must then continue so that by 2050, ships have reached an 80 percent reduction compared to 2020.”
The Fit for 55 also includes the extension of the EU Emissions Trading System to the marine industry. This means that, similarly to the FuelEU Maritime, all vessels of over 5,000 GT need to start purchasing emission allowances for each ton of carbon dioxide they emit. The amount of available allowances will decrease every year while their prices increase.
“Due to all these new changes, marine operators and manufacturers are seeking ways to switch to carbon-free fuels and are turning to Wärtsilä as well as other engine providers for solutions”, Wideskog states.
“Every sixth large merchant ship on the seas is equipped with a Wärtsilä engine. Our Lifecycle department is already discussing future fuel engine updates with multiple customers – and we are expecting the demand to only grow.”
