China's first indigenously built dual-fuel tanker powered by methanol has been delivered in Guangzhou city in South China's Guangdong province.

The 49,900-deadweight tonnage (dwt) vessel, which runs on a methanol dual-fuel drive system, can be driven by four fuel modes: fuel, fuel hydrate, methanol and methanol hydrate. It is also equipped with a variety of energy-saving devices such as front-facing conduits and vortex elimination fins, which can effectively improve propulsion efficiency, save energy consumption, and reduce ship operating costs.

Pilot tests have proven that the new ship can reduce carbon emissions by 75 percent, nitrogen emissions by 15 percent, and sulfur and particulate emissions by 99 percent.

"Green ships are a development trend in the shipping market. At present, the number of orders for dual-fuel ships in our hands has reached 38. In addition to methanol dual-fuel, we are also building ships that adopt liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel and battery hybrid power," said Zhou Xuhui, deputy general manager of the ship's maker Guangzhou Shipyard International.

Methanol is already available at over 100 ports worldwide. It is a clean-burning, safe-to-carry and fully biodegradable fuel which provides an immediate reduction in CO2 emissions.

Compared with similar alternatives such as LNG, methanol is more convenient to store and transport, and costs less in terms of infrastructure construction. With significant cost and safety advantages, it is rapidly developing into a popular type of marine fuel.