The Challenge of Integrating the Triple Bottom Line: Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment of a Multi-Fuel Propulsion System for Sustainable Shipping

From cradle to grave: Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment of maritime e-fuels

Global shipping keeps world trade moving — but it also accounts for around 3% of global CO₂ emissions and is one of the most challenging sectors to decarbonise. Promising alternatives such as ammonia, hydrogen and methanol could be a solution, but how sustainable are they when their full life cycle is taken into account?

In this FuelSOME presentation we take a deep dive into Prospective Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) for a solid oxide fuel cell-based maritime propulsion system. The results from a comprehensive environmental and social life cycle assessment of the FuelSOME system show the comparison of different e-fuel pathways with conventional fossil-based options.

The major environmental and social hotspots occur across global supply chains with fuel production dominting life-cycle impacts, and the choice of electricity source can influening the sustainability performance of e-fuels. The analysis highlights important trade-offs between greenhouse gas reductions and other environmental impacts, as well as social risks linked to ship operation and electricity generation.

Key insight: Meaningful decarbonisation of maritime transport is only achievable if ships are powered by hydrogen or ammonia produced using 100% renewable energy.