More than 50,000 tankers and vessels are at any given time transporting everything we need. Shipping accounts for 2 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions, equal to air traffic. The industry is aiming for zero emission vessels.
With the help of the visualisation made by Kiln it easier to grasp what this looks like. The below animation shows how many and where vessels moved, the number of containers they carried og and how much CO2 they emitted in 2012:
Created by London-based data visualisation studio Kiln and the UCL Energy Institute
Vessels could be CO2 neutral in 16 years
In April 2018 the International Maritime Organisation set targets to reduce CO2 emissions with 40 per cent by 2030.
Other greenhouse gases will be reduced by 50 per cent by 2050 compared with 2008. And by 2100 emissions shall be zero. Environmental organisations say these targets are good, but far from the 70 per cent target set by the EU and Pacific island nations.
The OECD think tank International Transport Forum however claims these targets are not ambitious enough. We already have technology that makes a 95 per cent cut by 2035 possible.
Synthetic methane
Both European and Japanese energy companies are showing increased interest for synthetic methane. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines recently announced that they will join the working group that will advance such solutions.
Hydrogen cells
Investments also increase to develop hydrogen cells. In the waters of San Francisco a catamaran ferry will be operating from September. The 70 feet ferry can take 84 passenger.
But part of the industry is reluctant to invest in hydrogen cells. Lack of ports that are designed for hydrogen cells is one reason. These ports will not be built until the demand is higher. The people behind the San Francisco catamaran disagree. They say the boats need to get on the water first to prove that this is the way forward. A bigger challenge is to find an profitable way to produce hydrogen, liquid or gas, in a zero emission manner.
The assurance and risk management company DNV GL recently published this report on alternatives for fuel technology.
Cover photo: The seismic vessel Ramform Challenger in storage in Farsund, Norway.
Your article helped me a lot, is there any more related content? Thanks!
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