The Forgotten Fuel That Could Power Shipping’s Future

By Paul Morgan (gCaptain) – Thorium, an abundant and largely overlooked radioactive metal, is emerging as the fuel of a new generation of compact molten salt reactors that could transform how ports produce marine fuels and support the energy transition. With China achieving the world’s first experimental proof of the thorium breeding cycle, and Danish engineers designing factory-built reactors that fit inside a shipping container, the timeline may be shorter than most in shipping expect.

The maritime industry has spent the past decade searching for the energy transition’s missing piece. LNG brought methane slip in its wake. Green methanol supply remains