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ICS publish Onboard Carbon Capture and Storage Review Report

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), publishes a report titled ‘Onboard Carbon Capture and Storage Review’. ICS commissioned Lloyd’s Register Advisory to undertake the study, and the detailed report focuses on up-to-date, high-level strategic guidance for shipowners on the evolving onboard carbon capture and storage (OCCS) landscape.

The report was commissioned at a time when international shipping is moving forward on its decarbonisation journey, and currently there are no alternative fuels available at scale. OCCS has been gaining traction as a potential pathway for both newbuild and existing ships to achieve compliance with tightening greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations.

The extensive report covers the current state of OCCS technologies, including a comparative assessment across key criteria such as technology readiness, fuel consumption, costs, safety, and environmental performance, as well as the latest developments in the regulatory framework.

The report found that OCCS is one of the few near-term options able to deliver material tank-to-wake reductions on vessels that will continue to operate on conventional or transition fuels through the 2030s.

ICS Technical Director Chris Waddington comments:

“It will be some years before the availability of the green fuels matches demand, and in the meantime OCCS has the potential to make a significant contribution to shipping’s decarbonisation. The numerous technological options and the complex regulatory landscape can be bewildering. Nevertheless, the report addresses many of the questions that shipowners have been asking and provides an excellent starting point for those that are considering OCCS as part of their decarbonisation strategy”.

Olympia Tsitonaki, Decarbonisation Specialist and project lead of the report, Lloyds Register Advisory, states:

“Shipowners need practical options they can act on now to improve emissions performance while continuing to operate efficiently. As regulation tightens, the industry is looking for tools, insights and assurance that can support better decisions across fleet operations and investment planning. This report provides a clearer view of where onboard carbon capture stands today, the challenges still to be addressed, and how it could support compliance and efficiency goals in the years ahead.”