A NEW report claims to offer a “practical blueprint for maritime decarbonisation”.
Mobile satellite communications company Inmarsat Maritime published the report, which was compiled by maritime consultancy Thetius.
The Decarbonisation Toolkit sets out a framework across three domains of energy transition: operation, ship and human element.
Inmarsat Maritime president Ben Palmer said the key to a successful decarbonisation strategy lies in implementing a practical, data-backed plan for the application of solutions that support greener, more efficient shipping companies.
“As a long-standing technology partner to the international maritime industry, Inmarsat remains committed to supporting businesses in overcoming their challenges, seizing their opportunities and achieving their decarbonisation goals,” Mr Palmer said.
Thetius principal research consultant Matthew Kenney said it is overly simplistic to think of decarbonisation as a compliance issue alone.
“Companies that have made proactive moves to seize the opportunities of decarbonisation are already seeing return on their investments,” he said.
“Carbon footprints are being reduced at the voyage, vessel and fleet level, and fuel costs, time and effort are being saved as a result. This report examines some of these achievements and maps out a practical blueprint to success.”
At the operational level, voyage optimisation is a particularly effective means of decarbonisation. In September 2022, Scandinavian shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen announced its intention to adopt an AI-based voyage optimisation system across its 120-vessel fleet. The announcement followed the company’s 18-month trial of a performance-routing solution that yielded a 6.9% increase in vessel efficiency, equating to a projected 170,000-tonne carbon dioxide equivalent reduction in emissions with a fleet-wide roll-out.
Alongside voyage optimisation, collaboration and data sharing could play a key role in lowering emissions. In February 2023, KCC Chartering and integrated energy company Raízen signed a three-year contract of affreightment targeting more energy-efficient operations through improved charterer–cargo owner communications and data exchange. By minimising legs in ballast and improving the efficiency of loading and discharge processes, the partnership is expected to result in a 40% reduction in the carbon intensity of its agreement.
Other methods include port-call optimisation and green corridor schemes, while tools available for decarbonising the vessel itself include carbon capture and storage, optimised hull design, energy-saving coatings and devices, wind propulsion, future fuels and connectivity and data-exchange infrastructure.
For example, in the first quarter of 2023, ship management company Eastern Pacific announced the successful installation of carbon capture and filtering technology on board the chemical tanker Pacific Cobalt. Installed in the ship’s stack, the system will capture up to 40% of the vessel’s carbon dioxide emissions, filtering out sulphur and particulate matter from the exhaust gases.
The human element, meanwhile, relies on behavioural economics and change management in addition to skilled decarbonisation teams. According to the report, crews should be trained in the new technology and processes that enable greener shipping operations, and they must be willing to embrace the changes that the maritime energy transition entails.
