On May 14, the Netherlands launched the first European-designed carrier for liquefied CO2, named Carbon Destroy 1. This vessel is a significant advancement for commercial-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in the EU. Built at the Royal Niestern Sander shipyard, it can transport around 5,000 tons of liquefied CO2 as part of the Greensand Future project, which operates between Denmark’s Port of Esbjerg and the Nini West offshore platform.
Carbon Destroy 1 is based on Royal Wagenborg’s EasyMax design and has been specifically modified for handling CO2 under pressure and low temperatures. This multipurpose vessel, measuring 492 feet long, aims for lower power output and improved efficiency. Mads Weng Gade, CEO of INEOS Energy Europe, noted that the vessel will create a "virtual pipeline" for transporting captured CO2 across Europe to be stored beneath the North Sea.
A CO2 terminal is also under construction at the Port of Esbjerg, which will initially receive CO2 from Denmark’s biogas plants. The project aims to capture and store 400,000 tons of CO2 annually, with potential expansion to 8 million tons by 2030. Carbon Destroy 1 is expected to be fully operational by late 2025 or early 2026, aligning with the project’s commercial launch.
