"The main issue with methanol at this stage is increasing access and the scale of green production," Peter Lye, global head of shipping at Anglo American, said.
Reuters GraphicsNetherlands-based OCI, which supplied green methanol to Maersk's first ship, can produce up to 200,000 tpy of the renewable fuel.
Bashir Lebada, CEO of OCI's methanol and fuels business, said the vessel orders have given suppliers a confidence boost in advancing their green methanol projects even though production is "very small" now.
Most green methanol projects are located in China, northern Europe and North America - far from major bunker hubs Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, creating a logistical gap.
Within Asia, South Korea and China are set to increase their capacity to fuel ships with green methanol.
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