Slowing Down Ships to Reduce GHG Emissions from the Maritime Sector

This article was originally published in our "Décryptage Mobilité" newsletter. To receive future articles by email as soon as they are published, Subscribe now. By Stéphane Amant, manager

The maritime sector is currently responsible for nearly 3% of global GHG emissions, according to the International Energy Agency. If shipping were a country, it would be the sixth-largest emitter on the planet. In light of the expected growth in maritime traffic, concrete and highly ambitious measures must be implemented to reduce the sector’s environmental impact. In early 2018, the IMO (International Maritime Organization) committed to reducing emissions from the sector by 50% by 2050, compared to 2008 levels (similar to the goal set by the aviation sector). Achieving this will require a wide range of measures, including, in particular, numerous energy-efficiency measures and extensive use of carbon-free energy sources (such as biofuels, synthetic fuels, hydrogen, ammonia, etc.). And as surprising as it may seem, A voluntary measure to reduce consumption is emerging among the available solutions : this refers to reduce the speed of boats, quite simply. In fact, a 12% reduction in ship speed could lead to a 27% decrease in fuel consumption and, consequently, in GHG emissions [1].

For the first time, More than 100 manufacturers in the sector agree to implement such a measure, they even encourage it … even though the general historical trend across various modes of transportation has almost always been to strive for greater speed. Beyond its novelty, this measure is particularly well-suited to maritime transport, where transit times are already long, and customers are more willing to wait than with other modes. Furthermore, it should be noted that Reducing speed also has a clear economic benefit, which is not insignificant given the support expressed by the 100 industry leaders backing this measure. And this may help convince those who are still hesitant. We will now be closely monitoring how the IMO chooses to address (or not) this proposal… Finally, this news raises another question: Couldn't such a measure serve as an inspiration for the road or air transportation sectors?, since here too, reducing the speed of cars, trucks, and airplanes would lead to lower emissions at a lower cost? … Food for thought!

 Sources: [1] Quartz