Maersk’s Njord and partners to work on fuel-saving tech backed by carbon credits

Greenheart, a subsidiary of Hayfin Capital Management, has partnered with green tech business Njord and maritime consulting firm Marsoft to work on fuel-saving technologies for retrofits underpinned by carbon credits.

As part of the partnership, Njord will design a bespoke package of fuel-saving technologies on, initially, four Greenheart-owned vessels, to achieve fuel and emission cuts of between seven and 16 per cent per vessel.

Furthermore, Marsoft will quantify and certify the CO2 savings through carbon credits, ensuring Greenheart will optimise the financial value of the fuel savings.

The partnership is set to make a strong business case for installing energy-saving devices.

“At Greenheart we are focused on performance improvement of our fleet and excellence in service to our clients. Whilst discussing with both Njord and Marsoft, we identified a complementary overlap in support, outcomes and goals, hence we suggested a tri party collaboration. We are therefore extremely excited to pilot this, and look forward to the work and findings. Collaboration in our industry is of paramount importance and this partnership is a firm step forward,” said Nikos Benetis, Technical Director at Greenheart Management.

Each of the four vessels will be screened to identify their fuel-saving potential. According to the partners, a custom-designed package of energy-saving devices for each vessel, selected from a portfolio of more than 20 technologies, will be developed.

“Despite the many environmental and financial advantages of installing energy-saving devices, the investment can still be difficult for owners to finance,” stated Frederik Pind, Managing Director at Njord.

“We help owners overcome that financing barrier by making the business case more attractive. We do that through our holistic approach of combining several technologies and representing a neutral opinion in the decision making. We are looking forward to partnering with Greenheart and Marsoft. In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, we are introducing a new financing vehicle, which we believe will accelerate technology adoption and emission cuts.”

Marsoft’s GreenScreen program complements Njord’s design approach by accurately assessing the emission reductions from the retrofits – a requirement to enrol the ships in a Gold Standard program. Marsoft’s collaboration with ClimeCo, which operates in the carbon markets, and secures premium pricing for Greenheart’s carbon credits in the voluntary carbon markets.

“The industry is beginning to see the real value of the carbon markets to accelerate the pace of decarbonisation today,” said Arlie Sterling, President of Marsoft Inc.

“We help secure an audited and documented statement of reduced CO2 emissions that delivers incremental revenue and return on investment.”

The partnership has commenced, with Njord currently screening the vessels to identify the most suitable technologies.

Njord is a green technological business founded by Maersk Tankers, which aims to accelerate cost-effective and industry-wide greenhouse gas reductions. The firm helps shipowners and charterers in container, bulk, tanker and gas shipping to become more efficient by offering advisory and technical solutions that help shipowners cut emissions.