Shell and MAN pooling resources to propel low-carbon energy era forward

German engine manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions has teamed up with Shell to drive decarbonisation efforts forward by developing low-carbon energy solutions, which will facilitate the transition to net-zero. This encompasses carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS), green-fuels innovation, and clean energy supply.

The two players joined forces thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which will enable them to explore the potential of combining their individual competencies and technologies to achieve their climate goals and support their customers in their decarbonisation efforts. This MoU was signed by the CEO of MAN Energy Solutions and Shell’s Vice President Downstream Projects in Houston, Texas, on 27 June 2023.

Dr Uwe Lauber, CEO of MAN Energy Solutions, remarked: “As we navigate the transition to a net-zero future, strong partnerships become crucial in driving meaningful change. We are very excited to embark on this partnership with Shell. Together, we will leverage our collective strengths and expertise to accelerate the development and deployment of sustainable energy solutions. Catering to sectors that are essential to the world economy, we aim to provide future-ready technologies to bring down emissions that are considered hard to abate.”

Therefore, the two companies will work on optimising CCUS plants with the aim of reducing CO₂ capturing costs, which will be achieved through the modularisation and standardisation of CCUS compressor solutions. This, in turn, will significantly decrease costs and speed up project implementation timelines.

Furthermore, another area of focus for the duo is the marine industry where the companies aim to promote the development of sustainable fuel options and integrated digital services for marine applications, and assess collaboration in the area of methane slip reduction, which they see as “a crucial topic” for environmental impact mitigation in the marine sector.

In addition, Shell and MAN Energy Solutions are committed to developing and providing integrated decarbonisation solutions that help minimise CO₂ emissions from their production plants and supply chains while assisting their customers in reducing emissions from their operations.  

Allen Pertuit, Vice President Downstream Projects at Shell, commented: “As we further operationalise our strategy, we see additional opportunities to decarbonise our assets and help our customers to lower their emissions, such as those in industry and transport. With hydrogen, biofuels, and CCUS we are seeding growth for the energy businesses of the future.

“Collaboration with partners, like MAN Energy Solutions, is important in the design and delivery of new business models that should address the needs of complex, energy-intensive, and hard-to-abate sectors.”

MAN Energy Solutions has made a name for itself by providing the shipping industry with green engines that can operate on climate-neutral fuels and offers carbon capture and processing technologies for industries worldwide. Once captured, CO₂ can be stored and reused to form the backbone of a circular carbon economy. Currently, there are 18 large-scale facilities in commercial operation around the world – eight of which use MAN’s CO₂ compression technology.

Shell Canada commissioned the firm with the delivery of an RG integrally-geared compressor for use in – what is deemed to be – the world’s first commercial-scale CCUS project to tackle carbon emissions. Located at an oil-sand operation in Alberta, Canada, the Quest project has captured and injected more than nine million tons of CO₂ underground since 2015.

Recently, MAN Energy Solutions was also hired by Malaysia’s Yinson to supply a total of 11 compressor trains for an FPSO vessel, which will be deployed at an oilfield project off the Angolan coast.