According to a publication in the Guardian, just one of the container ships, a length of around six football pitches, can produce the same amount of nitrogen sulfur oxides as 50 million cars. The emissions from 15 of these mega-ships match those from all of around 760 m cars in the world, despite the fact that such container ships' 100,000 plus horsepower engines are some of the most fuel-efficient units in the world. 

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Although container ships consume low-grade fuel, fuel-associated costs still account for 50 - 60% of total ship operating cost. If higher-grade fuels were used to propulse these ships, the operating costs would skyrocket. The only sustainable solution to this problem in the foreseeable future that can decimate the current harmful emissions is installing a series hybrid powertrain comprised of AG-gas turbine generator, and propulsion electric motors into each mega-ships. In other words, reducing ships' fuel consumption by half would make it possible to feed them with more expansive but cleaner fuels with lower sulfur content, which produce far less harmful emissions. 

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Due to the abundant water supply, the Open AG-Cycle may be implemented in most marine applications. Using water filters in river vessels is expected to be cheaper than using water recovery units. In many seawater vessels, desalination equipment utilizing the exhaust heat may be a more affordable option than Closed AG-Cycle.