The Friends of Ocean Action, a coalition of over 50 ocean leaders who seek solutions to the most pressing challenges for the ocean, organized an Ocean Day in Davos, in the beginning of March. The event touched upon shipping emissions and the possibility of a carbon free future.
Opening the event, Peter Thomson, UNSG Special Envoy for the Ocean, said that the initial strategy by IMO to reduce shipping emissions is a positive. However, he said that neither optimistic nor pessimistic about the regulation. He explained that the regulation is good news, but its parametres must be implemented, while the industry should be held accountable if it does not succeed in that.
[smlsubform prepend=”GET THE SAFETY4SEA IN YOUR INBOX!” showname=false emailtxt=”” emailholder=”Enter your email address” showsubmit=true submittxt=”Submit” jsthanks=false thankyou=”Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list”]
For his part, Christoph Wolff, Head of Mobility Industries, World Economic Forum, shared its optimism about the future decarbonisation of the industry. He noted that the actors involved in the supply chain, from the customers, to the shippers, have all realized the necessity of reducing shipping’s emissions.
Continuing, Claus V. Hemmingsen, Vice-CEO A.P Møller-Maersk, does not believe that the 50% emissions reduction is enough for the shipping industry. He explained that in order to meet the Paris Agreement goals, the world needs to see a carbon neutral shipping by 2050.
In addition, J. Adair Turner, Chairman, Energy Transitions Commission, believes that it would be possible to have zero-emissions ships in the near future. Mr. Turner noted that shipping, among other industries like aviation, can truly achieve zero-emissions by 2060. Electrification can provide a solution, but this would be ideal for short-sea shipping. For larger container ships a special combustion engine, engines working on bio-diesel, or the use of ammonia could address the problem.
Finally, Bryony Worthington, Executive Director, Europe EDF, said that new ships with advanced technology could play a key role in reducing shipping emissions. In fact, she said that a new regulation addressing this fact, could be possible in the 1-2 years.
