4 minute read
Opinion
At the most basic level, it’s more important than ever for ports to address CO2 ‘‘ emissions because it’s now critical for everyone to measure and manage them
methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and contributors to air pollution like nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulphur oxides (SOx), and particulate matter (PM) 2.5 and 10 from visiting ships’ main and auxiliary engines. We also provide recommendations that focus on establishing and building upon reduction strategies and support our customers to set achievable targets over time.
To expand the reach and impact of the MEP, RightShip has partnered with NxtPort Int’l, which originated in the Port of Antwerp, and deploys to over 3,000 public and private entities. This means that a full range of port communities around the world will be introduced to the benefits of the MEP.
What does the tool enable a port to do armed with information about its emissions?
Armed with this emissions data, a port can do any number of things. As you mention, the Port of Québec offers discounts on port fees to incentivise more efficient ships to use the port and thus reduce carbon emissions and improve local air quality. Other ports could undertake similar initiatives.
A port could also use this data to report on air quality to regulators or local government agencies; to better plan expansion and upgrade work; manage future fuel switching programs; make an investment case for shore power infrastructure to reduce in-port emissions; or to report to its own investors and stakeholders according to an Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy.
It can also allow a port to offer an incentive for reducing emissions. For example, the EcoCargo program is the Port of Québec’s initiative to reduce emissions and improve the environment in the local area. If a vessel has a good rating either from RightShip or Green Marine, then it may be eligible for discounted port fees.
The shipowner can gain a 10% discount, directly applied to harbour dues if it has a C grade in RightShip’s GHG ratings, or a 4.5 or higher rating under Green Marine’s program. This is raised to 20% for those with a B from RightShip’s ratings, and 30% for A-graded vessels.
dWhat benefi ts have ports such as Québec reaped from using the GHG tool?
The Port of Québec has its own robust sustainable development plan, and the GHG tool has enabled it to quantify - and therefore begin to influence - the emissions profiles and outputs of the vessels that enter its 35km² (14m²) site.
More generally, operators can use our insights to inform decarbonisation and air quality initiatives, as well as using them to meet reporting requirements in line with government and industry emissions reduction targets. The tool helps them measure and track different shipping emissions, transparently meet reporting standards, give robust, dependable, and flexible data, address environmental and health concerns and pressure from stakeholders, design port emission reduction and decarbonisation strategies, and attract sustainable or ESG-focused financing.
Any take home messages/words of wisdom you can pass on to operators?
Not so long ago, port operators might reasonably have taken the stance “Emissions aren’t our responsibility – they belong to the shipowners, charterers and perhaps - to an extent - buyers and sellers of the goods and commodities themselves. We’re just the infrastructure, we’re not driving the demand.”
And that would be true in a sense, but today there is a greater recognition that companies at every point in the supply chain share responsibility for decarbonisation, and that collaboration is the best way to go about it. The popularisation of ‘Scope 3 emissions’ as a concept has highlighted the idea that responsibility is collective.
Ports do bear a responsibility as part of the supply chain, and they can influence vessel selection and operation. They also owe it to their neighbouring communities to do what they can to safeguard against local environmental effects, such as air pollution.
Ports should also consider the changing priorities of their stakeholders.
National and local governments are placing greater emphasis on environmental protection, and even the investor community is increasingly concerned with the ESG performance of its portfolio. Therefore, if a port hopes to raise capital or secure permission for an expansion or program of development, it may well have an easier time if it can point to a track record of responsible environmental stewardship, with a credible data trail to prove it.
So, my advice would be - whether it’s using our GHG ratings, MEP or something else entirely - to think strategically about sustainability initiatives and how they can be informed and supported by robust data.Q
Ae o s ) m g t s , , d n d Q A and supported by robust data.
8 RightShip’s GHG
Rating provides a transparent method to assess the relative effi ciency of vessels
8 Jon Lane,
