The completion of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s first green methanol bunkering operation is set to enhance its status as a green shipping center, with local deputies to China’s top legislature calling on the city to grasp the opportunity brought by the nation’s energy transition drive.

CM HONG KONG, the world’s first methanol dual-fuel, roll-on/roll-off vessel, finished the inaugural bunkering of approximately 500 tons of green methanol in Hong Kong last week, marking a milestone in the city’s push to develop green shipping.

The bunkering operation, a collaborative result of China Merchants Energy Shipping, Sinopec (Hong Kong) and China International Marine Containers Group, was made via a ship-to-ship transfer. Compared with conventional fuel, it is expected to cut greenhouse gas emissions by about 85 percent.

The development coincides with the review of China’s proposed ecological and environmental code by Hong Kong deputies to the National People’s Congress (NPC) on Sunday during the ongoing two sessions in Beijing.

National legislators from Hong Kong believe the city could leverage its strengths in finance, technology and close connection with the world to play a significant role in the country’s green development and enhance its role as a green shipping hub.

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NPC deputy Gordon Lam Chi-wing said at the Sunday meeting that as China pushes forward with its “dual-carbon” goal and the launch of the code, the HKSAR can play a bigger role by upgrading from a traditional international shipping center to a key pivot of the nation’s green energy strategy.

The city can further consolidate its global shipping status by building an alternative fuels supply chain, with clean energy such as green methanol and green hydrogen being manufactured in the mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and being fueled in Hong Kong, he added.

Nancy Chu Ip Yuk-yu, another Hong Kong deputy to the NPC, noted there are three ways that Hong Kong could help fuel the nation’s green transition. The first is promoting technological innovation and working with other cities in the Greater Bay Area to facilitate scientific achievements transformation; the second is leveraging its role as a superconnector to promote the country’s high-level opening-up and enhance its voice in global governance; the third is attracting globally leading talents to serve the nation’s “dual-carbon” global, which aims to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

Hong Kong has been stepping up its green shipping efforts. It rolled out the Action Plan on Green Maritime Fuel Bunkering in November 2024, laying out a clear roadmap for the industry’s green transformation. According to the blueprint, Hong Kong aims to cut carbon emissions of locally-registered ships by at least 11 percent by 2026 compared to 2019 levels. It also set a target of increasing the usage of green maritime fuels by Hong Kong-registered ships to 7 percent by 2030.

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Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan said that Hong Kong completed 16 bunkering operations for liquefied natural gas and 110 operations for biofuels last year, involving up to 220,000 tons of green fuels.

“We will focus on green methanol in future to provide global shipping companies with a comprehensive supply chain and trading environment, with the aim of offering the best solution for different stakeholders in the international shipping industry,” she said at the bunkering ceremony in Hong Kong on Thursday.

Contact the writer at sally@chinadailyhk.com