Operational Energy Efficiency News

According to the latest edition of DNV’s Maritime Forecast to 2050, the shipping industry will find it challenging to secure enough supply of carbon-neutral fuels.To meet the anticipated demand of 17 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) annually by 2030, the maritime sector would need to access 30-40% of the projected worldwide carbon-neutral fuel supply.As the shipping industry will compete for these fuels with aviation and road transportation, as well as other industries, their production needs to significantly accelerate if the industry’s emission-reduction goals are to be met.

A new report by maritime advisory service UMAS has put figures on the energy efficiency improvements that are needed for international shipping if it is to meet the IPCC-derived 1.5ºC decarbonization pathway.This magnitude of GHG reduction, 37% in 2030 and 96% in 2040 on a 2008 baseline, has also been championed by some states as the targets that IMO should use in its revised GHG reduction strategy – due for adoption at MEPC 80 in July this year.UMAS states that, irrespective of how new fuels enter the global fleet…

Ammonia and hydrogen are promising potential fuels of the future in a de-carbonized shipping industry, which has to switch to alternative, zero carbon fuels in order to meet the targets set out in the initial  International Maritime Organization (IMO) strategy on reduction of GHG emissions from ships, an IMO symposium on sulfur 2020 and alternative fuels heard on Friday (18 October).Setting the scene, IMO's Edmund Hughes said the initial GHG strategy, adopted in 2018, had sent a clear signal that shipping will need to adapt. "We have to change to address global climate change," he said."We have to find new technologies and new fuels if we are to achieve at least 50% reduction in annual GHG emissions from international shipping by 2050…

IMO’s 2050 deadline to reduce GHG emissions 50% from 2008 levels has set off a gold rush to develop Zero Emissions SolutionsClimate change is the biggest issue facing [all aspects of] the maritime industry, said Kitak Lim, IMO secretary general, in an interview earlier this year with Maritime Reporter & Engineering News. He predicted that shipping could experience as much change in the next 10 to 20 years as it has in the last 100 years, as the industry races to meet a number of challenges…

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) treaty covering the prevention of air pollution from ships has been ratified by Iceland, bringing the total number of contracting States to 89, and representing more than 96% of world merchant shipping tonnage. The MARPOL Annex VI treaty limits the main air pollutants contained in ships exhaust gas, including sulphur oxides and nitrous oxides, and prohibits deliberate emissions of ozone depleting substances. It also includes energy-efficiency measures aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from ships. Stefán Haukur Jóhannesson, Ambassador of Iceland to the United Kingdom, met IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim at IMO Headquarters, London (22 November) to deposit the instruments of accession.

The first national workshop under the Global Maritime Energy Efficiency Partnerships GloMEEP), Project, which aims to support increased uptake and implementation of energy-efficiency measures for shipping, has been held in Georgia. Georgia is one of the Lead Pilot Countries for the project, which aims to build understanding and knowledge of technical and operational energy-efficiency measures to lead maritime transport into a low-carbon future. The national workshop in Batumi, Georgia (15-17 December), focused on raising awareness of Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), in particular the energy-efficiency regulations in chapter 4.

Ecoships introduced a customized version of the Six Sigma DMAIC approach to process and performance evaluation in order to optimize the energy-efficiency of the vessels under its management. The technique has already resulted in Ecoships’ managed ships benefiting from up to 15% greater fuel efficiency, resulting in substantial reductions in CO2, NOx and SOx emissions. “We specialise in eco-friendly and fuel-efficient shipping tools, techniques and technologies,” said Capt. Aykut Yilmaz, GM. “Our three primary goals are safety, fuel efficiency and minimum ecological impact.

International experts are meeting at IMO Headquarters with the aim of providing current & reliable ship Green House Gas emission information. This information would be used by IMO , through its Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), to base its work on further measures to reduce GHG. The Second IMO GHG Study 2009 estimated that international shipping emitted 870 million tonnes, or about 2.7% of the global man-made emissions of CO2 in 2007. An updated GHG inventory is…