The Oslo-based NGO Bellona Foundation has launched a three year partnership with the leading Dutch company Damen Shipyards Group.
The main goal of the partnership is to explore and develop concept vessels for the future. The agreement will be officially signed on March 18 during an industry event in Stavanger.
The Bellona Foundation and Damen both acknowledge that today’s global shipping industry will need to undergo substantial change in order to achieve its own climate and environmental objectives. The NGO and Damen have joined forces to work towards reducing the impact on the climate of a wide range of commercial and leisure vessels, as well as fleets employed by the aquaculture industry.
“One of Bellona’s goals is to make the ships of the future independent of fossil fuels. This partnership will provide us with new knowledge on innovative shipping construction that will contribute towards achieving that objective, said Frederic Hauge, founder and president of The Bellona Foundation. “Today the global shipping industry emits large amounts of CO2, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and other gases harmful to the climate and environment, and the European fleet is large and in need of renewal. The next three years of partnership with Damen will make us better equipped to handle the challenges, both domestically and internationally.”
“We are very pleased to be starting this partnership with Bellona,” added Damen’s Remko Hottentot, Sales Manager Norway, stationed at Damen’s Norway Office in Stavanger. “We have a strong focus on sustainability and the vision of each organisation complements the other in terms of environmental awareness. At Damen the focus will be on creating alternative solutions that contribute to reducing harmful maritime emissions into both the air and the water. This will go hand in hand with initiatives to develop cost-effective efficiencies through reduced consumption of potentially harmful inputs such as fuel, paint and lubricating oil. During this long term relationship we foresee in general a valuable focus on co-operating in the creation of environmental technical sustainable solutions and the fostering of political support.”
Hauge believes that the Bellona Foundation, as well as Norway’s maritime community as a whole, can learn a good deal from Damen when it comes to developing the next generation of low-emissions vessels. He sees Damen as an international trendsetter challenging the Norwegian mindset in a positive manner.
From his perspective this partnership will improve the Bellona Foundation’s capability to influence both the Norwegian and European shipping industries. Bellona has a 29-year track record of working on maritime political matters at a high international level, from their offices in both Oslo and Brussels. The partnership with Damen represents an important milestone for the organisation, giving it access to new knowledge and technology that will enable it to influence Norwegian and European politics even more than before.
Source and Image Credit: Damen
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