Shipping's Zero-Emission Fuel Goals at Risk

19 Oct 2023 CW Team

The global shipping industry is falling short of its target to have zero-emission fuels make up 5% of international shipping fuels by 2030, posing a threat to its 2050 decarbonisation objective, as revealed by a recent analysis. The assessment, unveiled at the Global Maritime Forum's annual summit in Athens, indicates that the current scalable zero-emissions fuel (SZEF) production in the pipeline would only cover a quarter of the required fuel by 2030.

Furthermore, the delivery of zero-emission vessels is lagging. By the end of 2022, there were 24 ships capable of running on SZEF, primarily methanol, with another 144 on order. However, current orders amount to just one-fifth of what is necessary to meet mid-term goals, according to the report, conducted by the UMAS consultancy, which includes experts from the University College London Energy Institute.

Kathryn Palmer, the shipping lead of the U.N. COP Climate Champions, emphasised that the current progress is insufficient in terms of scale and pace, underscoring the need for demand and supply actors to collaborate on implementing specific solutions.

Global shipping is accountable for approximately 3% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions resulting from human activities. The International Maritime Organisation revised its greenhouse gas strategy this year, setting a 5% target while also urging the industry to aim for 10% zero-emission energy in international shipping fuels by the end of the decade. Achieving this goal would require about 5.3 million metric tons of hydrogen, 29.8 million metric tons of ammonia, or 28.1 million metric tons of methanol by 2030. The industry is estimated to have to invest approximately $40 billion annually in SZEF bunkering and production.

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