Greener shipping called essential
Upheaval in the modern maritime sector can be compared to changes in the 19th century, when relatively efficient steampowered engines replaced giant sails dependent on gusts of wind.
Today’s regulators and cargo customers, however, want it all: quick transport of goods and a low carbon footprint. Their demands are prompting ship owners to clean up emissions, use low-sulfur fuels and ponder a future with electric autonomous ships.
Those who position themselves as environmental stewards on the front end of this transition will create a favorable reputation and secure their future, Joe Hughes, chairman of the North American Marine Environment Protection Association, said during a visit to Houston.
“If you ignore this, then inevitably you will not succeed over the long term,” Hughes said last week. “You will be shunned, effectively.”
His association was in Houston to discuss solutions to such challenges at an event hosted with the West Gulf Maritime Association.
One of the industry’s more pressing challenges is removing sulfur from emissions. New global limits on sulfur levels in ship fuel go into effect Jan. 1, 2020. The International Mari-
time Organization, the United Nations’ specialized agency responsible for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution, came up with the rules to reduce sulfur oxide emissions.
Currently, ships can use fuel containing 3.5 percent sulfur when on the open waters and 0.1 percent sulfur when in an emission-control area, such as within 200 nautical miles from the North American coast. It’s common to carry two types of fuel: the cheaper high-sulfur fuel for the open seas and the more expensive low-sulfur fuel.
The new regulations, however, will limit ship fuel to no more than 0.5 percent sulfur on the open waters and 0.1 percent sulfur in an emission-control area. This can be achieved by using low-sulfur fuels or by installing a scrubber system that removes sulfur from their exhaust.
Ram Vis, director of Viswa Lab and a proponent of scrubber technology, touted its quick return on investment and ability to help ship owners meet the forthcoming sulfur requirements.
Scrubbers can be controversial. Rear Adm. Paul Thomas, commander for the Eighth District of the U.S. Coast Guard, said open-loop scrubbers use seawater to remove sulfur from a ship’s emissions, then return that water — along with the sulfur — to the ocean.
Closed-loop scrubbers don’t put sulfur in the water, but ship owners are less likely to use those systems because they require storing sulfur onboard and then properly disposing of it when in port.
Thomas said the industry needs to continue moving from a focus on preventing pollution by accident to a focus on reducing waste created during the normal operation of ships. Achieving it will take greater enforcement and more industry transparency.
“In my mind, that truly is the sail-to-steam revolution that we’re talking about,” he said.
Ships fueled by liquefied natural gas, or LNG, would also meet the 2020 requirements. Aziz Bamik, general manager for GTT North America, said there are 120 LNG-fueled ships in operation, up from 100 last year, and 134 LNG-fueled ships on order, up from 101 last year.
Ferries make up the majority of LNG-fueled vessels, but momentum is gaining among other ships. Eighteen cruise vessels are under construction, he said, and shipping company CMA CGM is building large LNGfueled container ships.
Another game-changing technology discussed at the event was the use of big data. RightShip uses predictive analytics to help cargo customers select vessels that are less likely to break down and delay the delivery of their goods. It also identifies which ships have lower emissions and which ship owners have a history of not paying crew members in a timely manner.
“Big data allow us to have a macro view, a holistic view, of the risk associated with the maritime supply chain and address those in a safe and sustainable manner,” said Capt. Anuj Chopra, vice president of the Americas for RightShip.
If big data weren’t unwieldy enough, the conference also discussed autonomous shipping. This future is further off, but there are some early developments.
A small, electric and autonomous container vessel, Yara Birkeland, is expected to sail among three ports in southern Norway and stay within 12 nautical miles of the coast. Similarly, technology group Wärtsilä has remotely controlled a ship off the coast of Scotland from its office in San Diego.
“This is all real. This exists. It can be done,” said Kevin Humphreys, business development manager of the Americas for Wärtsilä. “Now all these other issues come into play.”
That includes figuring out how autonomous ships fit into the industry’s existing fundamental principles and international rules, said Jonathan Waldron, a partner at law firm Blank Rome. He said the International Maritime Organization is looking at which international standards should apply to autonomous vessels and which would need to be amended.
It’s the first step in a long journey. He hopes early regulations are flexible and can evolve with the developing technology.
“Autonomous vessels — we’re in the baby steps. The baby age,” Waldron said. “We have a long way to go.”
“Autonomous vessels — we’re in the baby steps. The baby age. We have a long way to go.” Jonathan Waldron, Blank Rome