€38 million investment marks a strategic shift in logistics with the Canaries
The investment of €38 million made by the JSV Group to bring the container ship MilaGreen into its fleet marks a strategic turning point for logistics with the Canaries, compared with operators such as Boluda, Fred Olsen (Bonheur), Baleària or Mediterranean Shipping Companny. The vessel, ordered via broker Arkona Allied Container as the representative of German shipowner Jüngerhans Maritime Services, stands out in the domestic coastal shipping market for its technical specification Methanol Ready.
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Certified class notation is designed for methanol as marine fuel
This class notation certifies that the ship’s design is fully optimized for adopting methanol as a marine fuel, positioning the Spanish company at the forefront of the energy transition in freight transport with the archipelago. The choice of methanol over other market alternatives is based on its metrics for reducing environmental impact at sea.
As a liquid fuel, methanol cuts carbon dioxide emissions by 40% to 70% compared with traditional petroleum derivatives. Its combustion virtually eliminates tired sulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. In a later phase of the transition, replacing fossil methanol with green methanol—synthesized from green hydrogen and captured carbon or biomass—would allow the vessel to achieve a neutral or even negative emissions balance over the total life-cycle accounting.
Methanol’s properties can reduce CAPEX versus LNG
Methanol’s physical properties offer decisive competitive advantages in terms of CAPEX. Unlike liquefied natural gas (LNG), which requires cryogenic tanks at sub-zero temperatures and high-pressure systems, methanol remains in liquid form at room temperature. This simplifies shipboard engineering: fuel tanks can be integrated directly into the hull structure or retrofitted from existing tanks with specific coatings, avoiding the massive loss of commercial space in the hold and lowering construction costs and any eventual conversion of the dual-fuel engines.
Operational and safety framework backed by DNV and IMO
The operational development of this energy vector has regulatory and safety support already consolidated by classification society DNV and the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Through MSC.1/Circ.1621 and the IGF Code for low-flashpoint fuels, the industry has clear guidance on managing the toxicity and flammability of methanol vapors.
To ensure safety during maneuvers, the ship’s engineering includes defined risk zones and injection of a small fraction of diesel oil as a pilot fuel into the combustion chamber, ensuring operational efficiency without compromising environmental protection standards.
Simple bunkering supports routes between the peninsula and the Canaries
The feasibility of methanol as a real solution for routes between the peninsula and the Canaries depends on the simplicity of its supply and bunkering logistics. Since it does not require complex cryogenic terminals, methanol can be loaded using tanker trucks directly at the quay or via dedicated barges, a technical flexibility that fits with the JSV Group’s fast-track operations at its Alicante port terminal and at Canary Islands quays. There are currently more than 120 ports worldwide with infrastructure prepared for the storage and commercial handling of this chemical product.
The MilaGreen fits within the Move to Green strategy
The incorporation of the MilaGreen aligns with the Move to green strategy promoted by the shipping company’s CEO, Sonia Herzog. The vessel has a nominal capacity of 1,200 TEU, with high compatibility for 45-foot Reefer containers and Pallet Wide loads. It is designed to anticipate requirements from the European legislative package FuelEU Maritime and the emissions trading market. With this acquisition, JSV secures the continuity of its logistics chain on the insular corridor, offering shippers a transport platform adapted to the decarbonization goals set for the coming decades.
A ‘Methanol Ready’ design allows use of methanol when infrastructure becomes available
The MilaGreen represents a new generation of container ships designed to combine operational efficiency, innovation and sustainability. Its main innovation is its ‘Methanol Ready’ technology, which will allow methanol to be used as fuel when infrastructure is available. This fuel can cut CO₂ emissions by 40% to 70%, in addition to eliminating virtually all SOx, significantly reducing NOx emissions and minimizing particle emissions.
This technological capability opens new opportunities to advance more sustainable logistics solutions, and also allows us to assess the start of steps to push for a new ‘green highway’ between the peninsula and the Canaries, reinforcing our commitment to cutting emissions and decarbonizing sea transport.
Prepared for shore power, with optimized hydrodynamics and route intelligence
The vessel is also prepared to connect to the electrical grid during cargo handling operations at port, anticipating European rules that will require this system in the coming years. In addition, it features a hydrodynamically optimized hull, latest-generation propellers and rudders, and an intelligent navigation system that optimizes routes based on real-time weather, reducing fuel consumption and emissions even using today’s fuels.
Original publication
The entry ‘Methanol Ready’ Technology in JSV’s New Vessel: Emissions Cuts and CAPEX Demands in the Canaries was first published on canarymaritime.com.
