SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
Scanship powers cruise ships with waste
- Published 24 June 2026; updated 21 September 2026; estimated reading time 2 minutes. Listed under Maritime.
- Scanship’s system uses microwave-assisted pyrolysis to process carbon-based ship waste, including food, sewage, paper, wood, plastics and oils, into flammable gas, bio-oil and charcoal. The company says these outputs can be used aboard the ship as fuel. This is presented as an alternative to burning waste to ash in an incinerator and as a way to handle shipboard waste and wastewater while reducing fossil-fuel demand.
- Scanship estimated that a cruise ship with 5,000 passengers could save 1,800 metric tonnes of fossil fuel annually and reduce carbon emissions by 6,500 metric tonnes per year. These are company estimates in the article, not independently verified figures.
- The article notes cruise ships’ emissions attract public attention and may affect a cruise line’s reputation and profitability. It says the waste-to-biofuel system was still being developed and describes an agreement with Virgin Voyages for a first ship that an older linked report expected to be delivered in 2020. That delivery forecast is past; this page does not establish current installation or operating status. Potential applications in industrial plants and smart cities are also prospective.
- Linked to SDGs 7 (Affordable and clean energy), 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure) and 14 (Life below water).
- Contact: Asgeir Wien, asgeir.wien@scanship.no. Company: SCANSHIP AS, Nedre Langgate 19, 3126 Tønsberg, Norway; scanship.no. A phone-number reveal control is present.