UK maritime decarbonisation supply chain – opportunities and challenges.

2.45pm – 3pm, 30 October 2025 ‐ 15 mins

Session Four: UK ports, infrastructure and supply chains

The maritime sector is a critical part of the global energy transition, and carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) can play a key role in reducing global CO2 emissions. UK has vast potential CO2 storage capacity, enabling it to store emissions from industrial clusters across the UK, but also potentially Europe and other locations. The ability to transport CO₂ by ship will make CCUS available to industries that are not part of existing clusters; it will also support UK storage of CO₂ captured in the EU/EEA and other locations, and vice versa – building resilience in the system, reducing costs for emitters and making the most of the UK’s abundant CO₂ storage capacity.

Transporting CO2 for sequestration requires an efficient and coordinated infrastructure network. Ship-based transport of CO2 provides the intermediate step to transport CO2 from smaller and dislocated emitters and provides a number of advantageous factors in supporting the CCUS chain:

• flexibility on routes to facilitate sink-source matching with low up-front capital expenditure
• adoption of solutions alternative fuels, energy efficiency, operational measures to reducing carbon footprint of shipping operations

Cross-border CO₂ transport and storage would also create economic benefits for industrial emitters across geographic locations, supporting both existing and new jobs. Some of the factors that are important for the deployment of CO2 shipping – from Policy and Regulation to Technology and Skills, includes:

1. International rules and treaties barriers for cross-boundary transportation of CO2 for sequestration
2. Port suitability, readiness and infrastructure challenges for CO₂ importation
3. Onboard Carbon Capture (OCC) and LCO₂ Ship Design & Regulatory Developments
4. Maritime skills gaps to support this emerging industry

Speakers

Nikki Ng

Technical Specialist, Lloyds Register

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Nikki Ng

Technical Specialist, Lloyds Register

Nikkii has 20 years’ experience in the upstream energy and maritime sectors gained in front end and detailed design engineering related activities, safety and risk consultancy as well as independent third-party verifications for compliances with Regulatory requirements. She has been involved in numerous offshore and onshore energy related facilities at various stages of the cradle to grave lifecycle of the asset, in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Canada and the North Sea.

Her current role with Lloyd’s Register is predominately focused on process safety aspects in LR’s Rules and Regulations development related to decarbonisation solutions and developments in both maritime and upstream energy sector.