New project for turning CO2 from smelters into renewable marine fuel launched in Iceland

Supported by technology and engineering companies Siemens Energy and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, a new project seeking to capture more than one million tons per year of CO2 that will be used to produce renewable fuel for the maritime industry has been launched in Iceland.

The so-called Carbon Iceland project, which officially kicked off in October 2024, centers around capturing CO2 emissions from the largest smelters in Iceland, starting with Norðurál, a Century Aluminum company, to produce renewable fuel for the Icelandic fishing and maritime industries and other transportation vehicles and equipment.

Carbon Iceland’s first capturing and production facility will be located at Grundartangi.

The project has already signed an off-take agreement with Útgerðarfélag Reykjavíkur, a privately-owned fishery company in Iceland.

In addition, Carbon Iceland also plans to provide renewable fuels for export, directly to large off-takers in Europe and the U.S..

Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industry will support the project by providing an optimal carbon capture technology solution and German-based Siemens Energy will use its know-how in Power-to-X and hydrogen production technology for the project’s energy system design optimization.

The project is also supported by industry partners such as Maersk, BP, Zephyr, University of Iceland, STEY, Rannis, Empower, Norðurál, THrounarfelag Grundartanga, and Orkusjóður.