Equinor has entered into a two-year agreement to supply biomethanol to Wallenius Wilhelmsen for use as marine fuel on the shipping group’s upcoming dual-fuel methanol vessels.

The Norwegian energy company said the agreement supports growing demand for lower-carbon fuels in the maritime sector. The biomethanol will be delivered as bunker fuel at the Ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp, with supplies scheduled to begin in late 2026.

Equinor explained that the supply will be based on methanol produced at its facility in Tjeldbergodden, Norway, combined with biogas certificates linked to captured biogas derived from manure and other biomass sources under the EU Renewable Energy Directive.

The firm's methanol is said to be produced using a mass-balance approach, in which biomethane injected into the gas grid is accounted for in the production process. This method allows biomethanol to be manufactured using existing infrastructure while capturing methane emissions that would otherwise be released from untreated manure feedstocks.

“We continue to see increasing interest in biomethanol as a practical, scalable solution for decarbonisation of shipping. This partnership with Wallenius Wilhelmsen marks a substantial step forward in bringing Equinor’s bio-based methanol to the growing marine segment for low carbon fuels. Equinor has previously signed supply agreements for biomethanol with Maersk and NCL, and we are progressing several leads for both bio and conventional methanol supply agreements,” said Alex Grant, senior vice president of Crude, Products and Liquids (CPL) at Equinor.

“Signing this deal with Equinor marks an important milestone for us at Wallenius Wilhelmsen. Securing low-carbon biomethanol supports the decarbonisation of our ocean operations, while strengthening our ability to deliver lower emission end-to-end logistics for customers. Partnerships like this are essential to scaling alternative fuels and moving from ambition to execution,” said Xavier Leroi, chief operating officer Shipping Services at Wallenius Wilhelmsen.

Wallenius Wilhelmsen is an operator in roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) shipping and vehicle logistics, transporting cars, trucks, heavy machinery and other cargo worldwide.