Green Ports News

Sticking to legacy tactics won't beat China — adopt Secretary Hegseth's and the Army initiatives or surrender the edge.In a recent address, Admiral Christopher Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, underscored the urgent need for a robotic hull-cleaning system to enable anytime maintenance, reduce drag, boost speed, and minimize fuel consumption for naval vessels. Hearing this, I immediately recognized an opportunity for the U.S. Army to step up and drive maritime innovation forward—at wartime speed.

A new report from the Getting to Zero Coalition identifies 25 new green shipping corridors – trade routes designed to demonstrate and scale novel zero-emission fuels, vessels, and technologies – launched this last year, expanding the global total to 84 active initiatives.At a Crossroads: Annual Progress Report on Green Shipping Corridors 2025 reveals that new initiatives have been launched in major developing economies like China, India, Brazil, Chile, Ghana, and Kenya.For the first time since the report’s inception in 2022…

“We estimate that coal shipments to advanced economies will fall 2% y/y in 2025, reaching a 23-year low. This will be the third consecutive annual drop although the pace of decline has slowed compared to previous years. The contraction is primarily driven by weaker coking coal demand due to reduced steel production,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.Between January and October, global steel production fell 2.1% y/y according to the World Steel Association.

Royal T Shipyards christened and launched tha diesel-electric MV Vertom Quina, the tenth vessel in the LABRAX series for Vertom. “The launch of MV Vertom Quina is a truly special moment,” said CEO Thecla Bodewes. “Not only does it reflect the strong and long-standing partnership between Royal T Shipyards and Vertom, but it also represents the tenth vessel in a series that embodies our commitment to innovation, sustainability, and high-quality craftsmanship. This milestone is a…

More than 200 guests attended the official naming ceremony of Stena Line’s newest vessel, Stena Futura, at Belfast Harbour. The 147-mhybrid freight ferry Stena Futura is the first of two next-generation “NewMax” freight vessels purpose-built for the busy Belfast–Heysham route. The ship is methanol-ready and equipped with hybrid propulsion systems, including battery capability and shore power connectivity. These innovations will help Stena Line achieve its goal of reducing CO₂ emissions by 30% by 2030.The naming ceremony was carried out by the ship’s Godmother…

TotalEnergies Marketing Middle East, a fully owned subsidiary of TotalEnergies based in Dubai, has time chartered a first-of-its-type 750 cubic meter hybrid lubricants bunkering barge from Tristar Group to supplement its Lubmarine division’s ship-to-ship operations in the port of Fujairah, UAE as of October 1st. The Tristar Eco Voyager, featuring a hybrid engine design that combines electric and biofuel power, coupled with an advanced powertrain, is designed to significantly reduce carbon emissions compared to traditional diesel propulsion barges.

Bunker Suite reports the successful completion of the first Electronic Bunker Delivery Note (E-BDN) trial onboard the Lady Clara in mid-October in Rotterdam.Developed entirely by Bunker Suite, the E-BDN platform replaces traditional paper-based workflows with a secure, fully digital process designed to streamline operations, enhance automation, and strengthen data integrity. The system ensures that all information is processed consistently and transparently, minimizing human error and mitigating the risk of fraud."Our E-BDN solution brings automation and security to the forefront…

The Waterborne Technology Platform has welcomed the EU’s Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP) which it says is key in facilitating the uptake of sustainable alternative fuels.The European Commission published the STIP on November 5, setting out a roadmap to accelerate the energy transition of aviation and waterborne transport sectors. The STIP identifies investment needs and outlines measures to make better use of existing EU financing programmes in support of the required investments. It also introduces measures to support the implementation of the facilitating regulatory framework.

The European Commission has selected 70 projects to help decarbonize transport and strengthen the competitiveness of EU industries by installing the infrastructure needed for recharging or refueling.The projects will receive over €600 million ($696 million) in funding from the Connecting Europe Facility to stimulate sustainable investments in urban areas, including ports and airports, as well as along road sections of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T).Twenty-four ports will receive funds to deploy onshore power supply…

Fuel-agnostic and suitable for newbuilds and retrofit, Organic Rankine Cycle waste heat recovery systems are making headway as an energy-efficiency measure.Market prospects are looking so good for waste heat recovery systems that Orcan Energy recently expanded its industry relationships by partnering with Goltens on installations.Andreas Sichert, CEO of Orcan Energy, said: “Waste heat recovery is one of the most powerful and underutilized tools for improving energy efficiency.

Newbuilds expand AET’s dual-fuel fleet to all of its sectors: Aframaxes, Shuttle Tankers, Suezmaxes and Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs)AET signed shipbuilding agreements with Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) for the construction of two LNG dual-fuel Suezmax tankers.The vessels will further expand  AET’s growing dual-fuel fleet operating worldwide. With these orders, AET will have dual-fuel capability in all the tanker sectors it operates in – Aframaxes, Shuttle Tankers, Suezmaxes…

On October 28, 2025 U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation’s Subcommittee on Coast Guard, Maritime, and Fisheries, convened the Senate hearing “Sea Change: Reviving Commercial Shipbuilding”. This hearing examined how to modernize and accelerate U.S. commercial shipbuilding while strengthening a larger maritime industrial base.Senator Sullivan opened with a statement that included: “Our nation faces a critical strategic challenge as foreign competitors…

CALCAREA Inc. and AURELIA Design B.V. entered into a collaboration to bring ocean-based carbon capture technology to the maritime sector. The partnership combines CALCAREA’s unique carbon removal process with AURELIA’s experience in green ship design and e-systems integration.At the heart of the collaboration is CALCAREA’s limestone weathering technology — a system that accelerates a natural process where carbon dioxide (CO₂) reacts with limestone and seawater, transforming it into stable bicarbonates safely stored in the ocean.

Damen Shipyards Group unveiled the latest platform in its cargo vessels portfolio: the Combi Freighter (CF) 5000 ICE, the first in a new series of ice class cargo vessels.“Our aim has been to leverage the experience and the success we’ve enjoyed with our next generation cargo vessels to create a platform capable of economic ice navigation," said Remko Bouma, Commercial Director of Damen Cargo Vessels. "The CF 5000 is equally at home in open water and in ice, maintaining both the optimal cargo capacity and high efficiency of the conventional vessel.

Anglo-Eastern Univan Group introduced its methanol bunkering simulator in October, developed in collaboration with Wärtsilä, a system that delivers both theoretical and practical training for the safe handling of methanol as a marine fuel. This follows the launch of the world’s first functional LNG ((Liquefied Natural Gas))/ammonia bunkering station skid at the Anglo-Eastern Maritime Academy (AEMA) in Karjat, Mumbai in February. Alongside the training skid, Anglo-Eastern has introduced…

MSC Cruises utilized shore power in New York for the first time when MSC Meraviglia connected to shore power at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal.The connection allowed MSC Meraviglia to switch off her engines to eliminate emissions locally, as part of the City’s and MSC Cruises’ commitment to improving local air quality while the ship is in port.MSC Cruises has fitted shore power capability as standard on all new ships since 2017 and is working to retrofit other vessels in its fleet.

Ports across the U.S. are learning a critical lesson: depending solely on government grants or an increasingly unstable electric grid is no longer enough to keep operations running smoothly. There’s a smarter, more cost-effective solution already proving its worth on the ground - propane.The exclusive webinar ‘Power & Performance at the Port: How Propane Moves Maritime Operations Forward’ - to be held October 16, 2025, at 11.00 AM ET - will bring together energy and maritime specialists…

Click HERE to sign up for the October 16, 2025 webinar Power & Performance at the Port: See How Propane Moves Maritime Operations ForwardTrade has been a rollercoaster recently. Between the unpredictability of tariffs and uncertain economic outlooks, ports have faced big swings in trade volume as well as pressure to do more with less. Operational efficiency and cost control are critical, which is why propane continues to emerge as a cost-effective, dependable energy solution that…

The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) and the International Association of Ports and Harbours (IAPH) have signed a two-year partnership agreement aimed at accelerating the decarbonization of the maritime sector.IAPH has a global port network comprising more than 200 port authorities and operators in over 85 countries. Together, GCMD and IAPH aim to strengthen the industry’s readiness for shipping’s fuel transition by tackling challenges and seizing opportunities in advancing alternative fuels bunkering…

In a recent sustainable fuel panel discussion, I once again found my self sucked into the sustainable fuel chicken and egg conundrum.I have discussed it before; shipowners will not buy ships that use a fuel for which no viable supply chain exists and fuel suppliers will not develop supply chains for which no buyers exist.In general, it is very difficult to break a chicken and egg conundrum, except through a direct directive or through, often very large, subsidies.Often direct directives leave the problem solution to the market.

A consortium led by Keppel Ltd. has been appointed by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) and Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) to conduct the next phase of the project to develop a low- or zero-carbon ammonia solution on Jurong Island, Singapore for power generation and bunkering.The appointment follows EMA and MPA’s Request for Proposal (RFP) process, where Keppel and its consortium partners, Sumitomo Corporation, and Advario, conducted a preliminary front-end engineering…

United Heavy Lift (UHL) said that Managing Director Lars Bonnesen has sold his shares in United Heavy Lift to the United Shipping Group and will step down from his role as of December 31, 2025. In a related development, Christian Monsted has also sold his UHL shares to the United Shipping Group and will continue his activities within United Marguisa Lines.This decision is closely linked to the next strategic phase of UHL, which will place a strong focus on newbuildings and further investments.

NatPower Marine and Peel Ports Group are set to commence installation of shore power at Heysham in September 2025, with the first plug live in the initial phase and expansion to four across all berths, by 2026.This will enable all Heysham routes within the Irish sea to operate with zero emissions while at berth and at sea, supporting full electric propulsion of the ferry services, as the first part of the full electrification of the Irish sea.Once all four berths at Heysham are electrified…