Penfield claims that it has carried out its first carbon-neutral voyage, which also alleges is the first by a tanker pool.
The voyage took place in conjunction with the Macquarie Group’s commodities and global markets division using the 158,400-dwt Seaways Hatteras.
The voyage included retiring carbon offsets, enough to cover the carbon footprint of an entire voyage, including the ballast leg and all in-port functions.
The Seaways Hatteras loaded 1m barrels of crude in Brazil and delivered to multiple ports in South East Asia, including Singapore and Malaysia, concluding on 24 June. The ballast from Singapore to Brazil also was covered
Penfield chose to pay the additional cost associated with the offsets on a trial basis, but has not revealed the cost.
The cost comes down to a few factors, including the quality of the credits purchased, the efficiency of the ship and the efficiency of the voyage. How it gets paid going forward will be determined after discussions first with our pool partners and then with the customers who are chartering the ships
said Penfield chief executive Tim Brennan.
Macquarie organised the offsets from multiple Verra-registered projects, including the Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve project in Indonesia that protects tropical peat swamp. Another involved Brazilian forest preservation.
Mr. Brenna also added that thus voyage represents “an impactful, practical and immediately executable pathway towards decarbonisation in the shipping industry.”