In 2021, because of the pandemic, we saw unprecedented supply-chain disruptions but also took important steps toward a decarbonized and sustainable global supply chain. It was a truly industry-wide effort, with Maersk and X-Press Feeders ordering what will be the world’s first container vessels running on carbon-neutral “green“ methanol—the first scalable carbon-neutral solution available for such ships—among the milestones.
Increased customer demand for green transport has helped push companies and shipowners to invest in in carbon-neutral vessels, and industry expectations are for this to not only continue in 2022, but to accelerate. Companies are waking up to the fact that progress is needed now and new solutions must be implemented on all aspects of the business. This is illustrated by the fact that the vast majority of container lines now stand firmly behind a net-zero target of, at the latest, 2050.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]
Shipping has long been caught up in a chicken-and-egg situation. No investment in vessels that can sail on carbon-neutral fuels has meant no investment in the development of carbon-neutral fuels and vice versa. With this vicious cycle broken and new, carbon-neutral vessels expected to hit the waters starting in 2023, the market for green shipping fuels is opening up. Beginning in 2024, Maersk alone will need between 300,000 and 400,000 metric tons of carbon-neutral fuel for its new methanol ships.
To sustain the newfound momentum, there are important regulatory components that must shape up. This past year has made it quite clear that the market is currently what drives developments in the area of decarbonization of shipping. Aside from the first investments in carbon-neutral vessels, this was most clearly demonstrated by a coalition of leading global retailers including Amazon, IKEA and Unilever who announced a target of switching all of their ocean freight to vessels powered by zero-carbon fuels by 2040. In 2022, the…
Source : time
