Chief Executive Vincent Clerc said ethanol, primarily produced in the United States and Brazil, could diversify supply chains and distribute the economic “upside” of decarbonisation more evenly across nations. “If all the upside is only in China, then some countries will object,” Clerc told the Financial Times. “But if the upside is more evenly distributed, then more countries will support it.”
Shipping, one of the globe’s most polluting industries, has faced growing pressure to reduce emissions, but international efforts have been hindered by political opposition, notably from the United States. Maersk executives hope that ethanol’s significance to US farmers and agribusiness could help overcome resistance from policymakers skeptical of climate initiatives.
The company has already begun testing ethanol as a fuel on its container ship, the Laura Maersk, initially using a 10 percent ethanol blend with methanol and gradually increasing to a 50-50 mix. Maersk aims to eventually trial 100 percent ethanol. Clerc noted that ethanol can scale rapidly without significant additional costs, although production and certification challenges remain. “It is an industry that is in overcapacity both in the US and in Brazil, and therefore could offer some immediate scale and positive impact on the carbon footprint,” he said.
Maersk’s move comes amid concerns about China’s dominance in clean fuels, particularly green methanol, and the slow development of green fuel projects elsewhere, such as Ørsted’s abandoned e-methanol project in Sweden. Clerc highlighted that dependence on a single producer country poses risks: “Not all of our ships go to China, not all of our ships can depend on energy from China.”
Diversifying fuel sources, he added, could help break the deadlock at the International Maritime Organization over climate rules. Despite potential challenges, Maersk has benefited from strong container shipping markets, driven by Chinese exports, and continues to monitor global economic conditions amid US tariffs.
Clerc also cautioned that while container ship overcapacity is expected in 2026 following years of underordering, any market pressure is unlikely to be severe or prolonged. The company’s ethanol strategy represents both an environmental and strategic effort to future-proof Maersk’s operations in an increasingly decarbonized global shipping sector.
