Bernhard Schulte, the ship owning arm of the Schulte Group, will take delivery of its first liquefied carbon dioxide  carrier. The vessel, which was christened “Northern Purpose” on 19 May, marks an important milestone in the group’s strategic expansion into carbon capture and storage-related shipping.

The “Northern Purpose”, built at Dalian Shipbuilding Offshore  in China, has been custom-designed to transport liquefied CO₂ as part of the Northern Lights project, the world’s first cross-border CO₂ transport and storage infrastructure. Following her delivery, the vessel will enter a long-term time charter and support the safe and efficient transport of captured CO₂ from industrial customers in Northwest Europe to Norway for permanent geological storage.

“Our new LCO₂ carrier marks the exciting expansion of Bernhard Schulte’s fleet portfolio into this innovative tanker segment. We are delighted to be part of Northern Lights’ industry-leading project to provide CO₂ transport and storage infrastructure,” says Johann Schulte, Majority Shareholder of the Schulte Group and Chief Commercial Officer of Bernhard Schulte. “The close collaboration with DSOC as selected shipbuilding partner underscores our long-standing relationships with Chinese shipyards.”

“We welcome the ‘Northern Purpose’ into the world’s first fleet of dedicated CO₂ carriers. The delivery of the ‘Northen Purpose’ marks an important milestone in scaling the transportation capacity needed to support Europe’s decarbonisation. We are looking forward to working with Bernhard Schulte to deliver safe, efficient and reliable operations for many years to come.” says Tim Heijn, Managing Director in Northern Lights.

“The construction of this vessel marks another milestone for Dalian Shipbuilding Offshore Co., Ltd. in the LCO₂ carrier construction domain, standing as a testament to the successful cooperation between DSOC and Bernhard Schulte. We are honoured to bolster Bernhard Schulte’s fleet with this cutting-edge vessel,” says Mr. Sun Yingzhi, Chairman of DSOC. “DSOC remains committed to continue partnerships with Bernhard Schulte and Northern Lights, as we join forces to advance the global green clean energy sector and drive the high-quality development of the international shipping industry.”

The newbuilding is the first vessel of this type for the Bernhard Schulte fleet and the fourth LCO₂carrier for Northern Lights. All four ships are sister vessels with the same design and have a cargo capacity of 7,500 m³ each, distributed across two cylindrical pressure tanks. They are engineered to safely handle CO₂ at low temperatures and medium pressure, ensuring operational reliability across the entire transport chain. The four ships are the first of their kind to safely transport CO₂ from European emitters to Northern Lights’ CO₂ receiving terminal at Øygarden, before it is permanently stored beneath the Norwegian continental shelf.

“Northern Purpose” features a range of technologies aimed at reducing its operational carbon footprint. The vessel is equipped with an LNG dual-fuel propulsion system. Combined with other proven technologies, in particular a wind-assisted rotor sail and an air lubrication system, this results in significantly lower CO₂ emissions.

The vessel is managed by Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), also part of the Schulte Group. The “Northern Purpose” represents BSM’s entry into the management of liquefied CO₂ carriers, adding a new vessel type to its global fleet of more than 670 managed vessels.

Facts about the ship

• Capacity: 7,500 m³  liquid CO₂
• Two cylindrical cargo tanks
• Length: 130 meters
• Cargo transport conditions: maximum 19 bar(g) pressure and minimum -35°C temperature
• LNG dual-fuel propulsion system
• Wind-assisted rotor sail and air lubrication system installed