Bureau Veritas introduced a Green Rating Composite Index which will provide charterers and regulators with a tool to compare the environmental performance of ships and will give owners a tool against which to assess environmental investment in the vessel.
The Green Rating Composite Index builds on BV's international experience with rating the environmental performance of buildings and its research into new technologies to make ships more fuel efficient. "To encourage the market to use the most environmentally-friendly ships, and to encourage owners and yards to invest in greener technology, we must have a clear standard to compare the environmental performance of ships," explains Didier Chaléat, Senior Vice-President, Bureau Veritas. "We have started two years ago with our Golden Pearls labels to allow cruise companies to show to the public the specific attention paid to environmental matters related to air, water and waste emissions. But that is not enough for general shipping. There are moves to develop schemes in shipping but the lead has come from other industries where such indices already exist. So we have used BV's experience in other fields to benefit shipping by developing this new Green Rating scheme which can apply to great variety of ships. It will be a powerful tool for creating meaningful green comparison in the market place and for helping owners differentiate investment efficiently."
The BV Green Rating Composite Index is built on two indexes which bring together a set of measurable variables in two ways. The indexes measure five variables:
1. Energy performance (in kJ/tonne/mile or kJ/passenger/cruise day)
2. Greenhouse gas emissions (in kg/tonne/mile or kg/passenger/cruise day)
3. SOX emissions (in kg/tonne/mile or kg/passenger/cruise day)
4. NOX emissions (in kg/tonne/mile or kg/passenger/cruise day)
5. The period the vessel can operate without discharge of fluids such as black water or grey water.