Exploring the impact of methanol as an alternative, cleaner fuel for the auxiliary and support vessels within the RNLN

The Netherlands Ministry of Defence has declared an ambition to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels by at least 20% by
the year 2030 and 70% by the year 2050 (compared to 2010); and as the seagoing support vessels within the Royal Netherlands
Navy (RNLN) approach their end of life, the RNLN seeks to exploit the opportunity to introduce an alternative fuel source
and begin the journey towards reduced fossil fuel dependency. Building on previous work, this study elaborates on the use of
methanol, ammonia and hydrogen. The total lifetime costs are quantitatively evaluated alongside a holistic evaluation of the
societal cost of CO2-emissions in order to determine the point at which the fuel price point of synthetically produced fuels
becomes economically viable. Besides this, the impact on ship design is examined using the Ships Power and Energy Concept
(SPEC) research tool. Concluding, synthetic fuels produced using renewable energy offer the greatest greenhouse gas
reductions, but given their current technological maturity are not yet financially attractive. However, biofuels like biomethanol
are a feasible stepping stone to gain experience in the use of alternative fuels on ships. Additionally, as expected,
the parametric approach in this study suggests the ship dimensions and displacement will increase, mostly due to the relatively
low energy density of the fuels. However, further concept design is required to investigate whether the actual ship design
grows, or whether additional volume for fuel is available in the design of these vessels, which are primarily driven in size by
the deck space required for their operations.