K Line and Yinson Production set sights on LCO2 shipping and injection solutions

K Line Energy Shipping, a London-based unit of Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line), has joined forces with Yinson Production, an owner and operator of floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels, to develop and market liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carrier and injection solutions.

The companies have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to jointly develop and market a floating storage and injection unit (FSIU) and a liquefied CO2 carrier, focusing mainly on European carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects.

Seen as a suitable solution for offshore CCS projects where it is difficult to secure sufficient land for an onshore CO2 receiving terminal, or where the distance between a receiving terminal and the offshore storage site would require an extended pipeline, FSIUs are being considered for several projects, including the Havstjerne carbon storage project in Norway, 40% owned by Stella Maris CCS, a unit of Yinson Production.

Under the new MoU, Yinson and K Line intend to strengthen their partnership, which began in 2018 in the FPSO sector and includes both parties co-owning FPSOs Anna Nery and John Agyekum Kufuor in Brazil and Ghana, and leverage their combined expertise to develop integrated solutions for the transportation and injection of liquefied CO2 in the CCS value chain.

Lars Gunnar Vogt, Chief Technical Officer of Yinson Production, said: “This collaboration with “K” LINE builds on our longstanding relationship and complements our deep knowledge of marine systems.

“By combining our FPSO and offshore engineering expertise with “K” LINE’s proven CO2 shipping capabilities, we are well positioned to contribute to the development of innovative services that will enable large-scale carbon transport and storage. This provides a one-stop solution to help industrial emitters achieve their decarbonization targets. We look forward to supporting the growth of the CCS sector and accelerating progress toward global decarbonisation.”

Kei Onishi, Corporate Officer of K Line, added that this collaboration “will complement traditional port-to-port transport models for CCS Value Chain and offer emitters greater flexibility in meeting their decarbonization goals.”

K Line’s UK subsidiary has managed liquefied CO2 carriers for the world’s first commercial CO2 transport and storage service, Northern Lights, since 2024. The first in a fleet of four liquefied CO2 transport ships built for the project, Northern Pioneer, was recently loaded with inaugural CO2.

Meanwhile, Singapore-headquartered Yinson Production has been developing and investing in carbon capture technologies, such as its FPSO Agogo, slated to begin operations in the second half of 2025 at the Agogo Integrated West Hub development project in Block 15/06 offshore Angola under a 15-year firm charter.

The FPSO Agogo comes with a closed flare system, hydrocarbon blanketing, combined cycle technology, automated process controls, and all-electric drives, which is perceived to align with Yinson Production’s goal of being carbon neutral by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050, as the carbon-reducing technologies onboard the FPSO are expected to slash carbon emissions.