By enforcing mandatory slower steaming on ships destined for EU ports
The European Union will take measures for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by enforcing mandatory slower steaming on ships destined for EU ports in case the International Maritime Organization fails to proceed. One measure that the Europan Commission has, in order to cut down CO2 emissions, is to suggest a potential mandatory speed reduction for all ships entering EU ports.
The member states and lobby groups at the International Maritime Organization, which are taking part in this weeks meeting, have taken into consideration that they ought to agree on measures regarding the reduction of shippings greenhouse gas emissions. Even if they agreed for the energy efficiency design index, there is still the likelihood that Brussels will find this measure insufficient and will decide to proceed alone by taking its own decisions.
Anyone citizen living in European Union knows that there is a goal of reducing the regions greenhouse gases by 30% by 2030, based on the 1990 levels. However, shipping is also expected to play its role in this goal. That is the reason why the Commission is waiting to see if the IMO is able to find solutions to this environmental problem. The commissions Directorate-General for Climate Action was established in February last year, headed up by former Danish environment minister Connie Hedegaard.
It has created the European Climate Change Programme, and within this there is the shipping working group which has already start thinking about potential measures that can be deployed within the shipping industry in Europe if the IMO do not manage to deliver. A 2009 policy options report, produced for the commission by the Dutch research group CE Delft, suggests five recommendations. These are the market based measures and include a cap and trade system; an emissions tax with revenues collected outside national taxes; a mandatory efficiency limit in ports based on the EEDI; a baseline and credit system; and voluntary action based on the energy efficiency operational indicator. Above measures are still being discussed by the ECCP shipping working group.
One of the proposals considered during a recent meeting of the shipping working group, is a mandatory speed limits for ships. Slow steaming has been effectively used in the container liner trades during recent depressed times to save fuel. Saving fuel has clearly an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions. Setting speed limits as a measure for reduction, is being supported by the lobby group “Seas at Risk” , which has been active in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change talks as well as the IMO.
John Maggs, who is a shipping and EU policy adviser, supports the idea that there can be a mandatory speed limit found for different ship types which can contribute to society without increasing the costs for the owners.
Even if the IMO agrees on the EEDI, it will not be enough for the European Union. The EEDI would apply only to newbuildings, so in 15 years would only have had an impact on half of the worlds fleet, and not dramatically enough to create the necessary CO2 reductions. A market based measure would take a number of years to be developed and ratified before it comes into force. While the EU is looking at expanding its current market based measures to include shipping, this also could take some time to be developed.
Intertanko and the Oil Companies International Marine Forum recently finished their proposals for virtual arrival the idea of reducing a tankers speed to meet a predetermined arrival slot at an oil terminal. Moreover, Maersk such as other liner operators, have been reducing their container vessels speed during the downturn or when fuel prices spiked. Maersk has announced that it could sail at much lower speeds than the engine makers thought without having any undue damage or additional maintenance costs to the ships engines.
The mandatory speed limit concept has yet to be developed fully as there are more options. It could apply to all vessels in European territorial waters, apply only to vessels moving between two European ports, or only to vessels in harbour limits. The best option is to apply the rule to all ships destined to any European port, regardless of their location. This requires jurisdiction, monitoring and enforcement challenges. The proposal for a speed limit would then be a prerequisite for entry into any European port. Offenders would be banned from entry or fined. Mr Maggs insists it would not only work on EU flagged vessels as this would encourage shipowners to avoid doing anything by reflagging their vessels. There are, however, hurdles that would need to be overcome if such a scheme were to become reality.
Reducing a vessels speed means additional tonnage would have to be provided to keep the same level of cargo supply. But still there are issues of enforcement whether the European Commission is able to penalise a vessel that is sailing at a given design speed which is higher than the speed limit it wants to set, in the open oceans or in another non-EU member states territorial waters. Such measure would only work if Russia and the Black Sea countries were involved, as this would mean that some vessels passing through European waters would be exempt. If the measure was accepted, then ships would start to be optimised for slower speeds. However, there is a doubt if this would not lead to vessels that are built with too little power to remain operationally safe.
A study from Marintek suggests that the costs will not be increased and if the right speed limits are chosen, this will lead to a reduction in fuel savings for the shipowner. Shipowners will prefer this measures than a bunker levy or an emission trading scheme. Modern vessel tracking techniques, such as satellite-based detection of a vessels automatic identification signal, could be deployed to track vessels and assess average speeds.
However, shippers may drop cargo off at non-European ports for transhipment to Europe, possibly using other modes of transport, and there are the impacts on time sensitive cargoes and the overall logistics supply chain which will see higher levels of cargo in transit at any one time.
