Image: MAERSK
Integrated logistics company Maersk and Egyptian authorities have signed a partnership agreement to explore Egypt-based hydrogen and green marine fuel production.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in a joint bid to accelerate green fuel supplies and global transformation to net-zero shipping. The MoU was signed in the presence of the Egyptian Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly.
The partnership follows six fuel sourcing partnerships announced earlier this month. Maersk joined forces with the General Authority for Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), the Egyptian New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC), and the Sovereign Fund of Egypt for Investment and Development (TSFE).
Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, Maersk CEO of Fleet and Strategic Brands, commented on the announcement in a statement: “Egypt has excellent conditions for renewable energy production and ambitions to become [a] global leader in the green energy value chain. We are very excited to be able to explore options together, drawing on our more than 100 years of business relations in the country.”
Thygesen went on to comment on the strategic partnership as key for addressing challenges impeding shipping decarbonisation.
“The availability of green energy and fuel in sufficient quantities and at cost-competitive price levels is the single biggest challenge to the decarbonisation of global shipping,” she said, adding that even more scale is needed to stay on the 1.5 degrees pathway.
The parties will conduct a feasibility study before the end of 2022 to examine Egypt-based hydrogen and green marine fuel production. This will be powered by renewable energy with Maersk as a committed offtaker.
CEO of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt, Ayman Soliman: “Specifically for The Sovereign Fund of Egypt, this potential opportunity adds a new dimension to our roadmap towards zero-emission targets. Maersk’s bid to accelerate the supply of green fuels and the global transformation to net-zero shipping will expand the Suez Canal’s service offering as a main global hub for green bunkering in the region.”
