Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Becomes First Shipping Company to Remove CO₂ with Climeworks

Key take-aways:

• Climeworks will remove 13,400 tons of CO₂ for Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) through its Direct Air Capture technology.
• The agreement marks two important firsts for Climeworks: our first collaboration in the shipping industry and our first partner from Japan, which is taking on a growing role in the carbon removal market.
• MOL sets a strong example for hard-to-abate industries, where carbon removal will be critical to reach net zero.
• In addition to the offtake agreement, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding for potential investment in Climeworks’ future Direct Air Capture plants.

The carbon removal agreement supports MOL's strategy to achieve net zero by 2050.

Climeworks, a global leader in carbon removal, and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), one of the largest shipping companies in the world, signed an agreement to remove 13,400 tons of CO₂ from the air by 2030. MOL is Climeworks’ first partner from the shipping industry, underscoring the Japanese company’s leadership in advancing technologies that durably remove CO₂ from the air.

In addition to the carbon removal offtake agreement, the two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding for potential investment in Climeworks’ future Direct Air Capture plants. Climeworks has a global pipeline of projects under development to accelerate its path to million-ton capacity in the 2030s, which MOL envisions participating in.

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Navigating to net zero

In line with the International Maritime Organization's climate strategy, MOL is promoting several initiatives to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. On top of adopting clean energy, implementing energy-saving technologies, and increasing the efficiency of its operations, MOL aims to contribute 2.2 million tons of carbon removal by 2030. The agreement with Climeworks, focused on its cutting-edge Direct Air Capture technology, marks a significant step toward that goal.

"At Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, we’re committed to navigating toward a net-zero future. Contributing the expansion of high-integrity carbon removal credits, driven by Climeworks’ state-of-the-art Direct Air Capture technology, empowers us to address emissions that are hard to eliminate through conventional methods. This is not just an investment in carbon removal but an investment in the future of sustainable shipping", says Hisashi Umemura, Senior Executive Officer of MOL.

Next to in-sector emissions reductions, carbon removal will be critical to reach net zero in hard-to-abate industries like shipping. Eliminating emissions of cargo ships is much more challenging than decarbonizing the automotive industry, for example, where electric batteries are a feasible alternative to fuel.

Expanding global demand for carbon removal

MOL is not only the first shipping company to partner with Climeworks, but also its first customer from Japan, highlighting the country’s growing role in the evolving carbon removal market. In April 2024, Japan became the first country to announce the inclusion of international, durable carbon removal credits like Climeworks’ in its emission trading system phase 1.