NYK Bulk & Projects Carriers (NBP), the bulk shipping arm of Japan’s NYK Group, has completed a voyage using low-carbon methanol on its dual-fuel bulk carrier Green Future, achieving an estimated 65% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions on a well-to-wake basis.
The operation involved transporting copper concentrate for mining firm BHP and, according to NYK, marks the first use of low-carbon methanol on an oceangoing bulk carrier.
The bio-methanol fuel was produced from biomass-derived feedstock and bunkered in Ulsan, South Korea, in September 2025. The product carries ISCC EU certification, verifying its sustainability and lifecycle emissions credentials.
Green Future, delivered in May 2025 as NYK Group’s first methanol dual-fuel bulk carrier, later loaded copper concentrate in Chile in January 2026, and is scheduled to discharge in China in March.
NYK said the trial demonstrates how low-carbon fuels can materially cut shipping emissions while also helping cargo owners address value-chain emissions linked to transported commodities. The company added that it will continue working with customers to expand adoption of alternative fuels in bulk trades as part of broader decarbonisation efforts.
