Identifying the top ports for pioneering green initiatives: a new tool helps developers choose the best location

Home Green Marine New! Discover the Best Ports for Green First-Mover Efforts

December 1, 2023, by Naida Hakirevic Prevljak

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and Lloyd’s Register (LR) Maritime Decarbonisation Hub, in collaboration with Arup, have unveiled the Sustainable First Movers Initiative Identification Tool. This system is designed to help shipping stakeholders align investment decisions that support the maritime energy transition away from fossil fuels.

Source: IMO

The tool, which is presented in an initial findings report called “The Potential of Ports in Developing Sustainable First Movers Initiatives,” rates a port’s capacity to produce and bunker electrofuels. It also evaluates the regional environmental and community benefits in alignment with the global temperature target of 1.5 degrees Celsius set by the Paris Agreement.

“Ports can play an essential role in initiating shipping’s decarbonization process even before global policies are established,” said Marie Cabbia Hubatova, Director, Global Shipping at Environmental Defense Fund.

“By considering the impact sustainable first mover efforts can have on port-side communities, environment, climate, and economies, resources can be better directed to places where these efforts will make the biggest difference.”

With nearly 2 billion people living near coastal zones worldwide, the role of, and impact on local port communities must be deliberately considered as the sector decarbonizes globally. Ports can play a crucial role in ensuring shipping decarbonization efforts are carried out in a manner that has a positive impact on port communities.

The initial phase of the Sustainable First Movers Initiative Identification Tool analyzes 108 ports in the Indo-Pacific region according to five criteria including land viability, air quality, renewable energy surplus, economic resilience, and ship traffic. It is also applied to three different port scenarios, including ports exploring fuel production and bunkering, ports exploring fuel exports, and ports exploring fuel imports and bunkering.

The combined criteria and scenario assessment identify which ports have the greatest potential (‘high capacity’) for sustainable first-mover efforts to lead to significant emissions reductions and positive impacts in nearby communities, such as improved air quality and economic strength.

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“The transition to clean energy supply for shipping can be achieved only if stakeholders act together. Identifying potential port locations is the first step in this process,” stated Dr. Carlo Raucci, Consultant at Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub.

“This approach sets the base for a regional sustainable transition that considers the impact on port-side communities and the need to avoid areas in the Global South lagging behind.”

Areas in the Global South are crucial in driving the decarbonization of shipping. To make this transition effective, the rate at which different countries adopt and scale up electrofuels must be proportional to the difference in capital resources globally to avoid additional costs being passed on to local communities.

Sustainable first-mover efforts can play a crucial role in making this happen by ensuring the sector’s decarbonization is inclusive of all regions and by engaging all shipping stakeholders,

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