CLASSIFICATION society DNV has supported shipping line Hapag-Lloyd in obtaining finance for six efficient containership newbuilds according to the Green Loan Principles of the Loan Market Association.
Hapag-Lloyd has concluded two debut transactions according to the LMA, as reported previously in DCN. Now, DNV has provided a second party opinion to confirm compliance with the requirements as an independent expert. The transactions are associated with the financing of six ultra-large 23,500 TEU container ships, which were ordered in December 2020.
“Our first green financings are a major milestone for us, as we are breaking new ground in the container shipping segment by financing newbuilding projects geared towards sustainability,” said Mark Frese, chief financial officer of Hapag-Lloyd.
“The transactions will help us to modernise our fleet while further reducing our CO2 footprint at the same time.
“In addition to enjoying our constructive collaboration with DNV on this project, it was also very helpful – especially with regard to the formal requirements for preparing a secondary opinion and the technical specifications of the vessels.”
Shaun Walden, project director, sustainability and ESG services, DNV said, “We were very pleased to have been asked by Hapag-Lloyd to offer our independent expertise to assess whether the vessels meet the Green Loan criteria.
“This is a ground-breaking deal that shows that the industry can move towards greater sustainability hand-in-hand with improved commercial performance of the asset.”
The global head of the shipping advisotry practice at DNV Maritime, Jan-Henrik Hübner said, based on their hydrodynamic optimisation, efficient main and auxiliary engines and use of LNG as their main fuel, these vessels can meet all the criteria required.
“Furthermore, with the ability to run on bio- and synthetic-LNG once these fuels become more widely available, they offer an example of how vessels can reduce carbon intensity now, while being ready to move to a lower or zero carbon future.”
As a result of the highly efficient high-pressure LNG dual-fuel engines, the six newbuildings will have CO2 emissions approximately 15 to 25% lower than a comparable conventional fuelled vessel. This means that in addition to the requirements of the LMA’s Green Loan Principles, the ships will also satisfy the EU Taxonomy’s technical screening criteria for sea and coastal freight water transport.
The vessels are being built in South Korea and are scheduled to be delivered in 2023.
