• Industry to shell $118 bn annually on fuel transition

Sopuruchi Onwuka, with agency reports

Transitioning global shipping and sundry maritime logistics to cleaner fuels would require costlier operating capital for the industry, threatening the economies of small island nations and their transportation systems.

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But the Head of the United Nations Trade and Development Agency (UNCTAD), Rebeca Grynspan, declared in the agency’s annual report that cutting the emissions footprint of the shipping industry has become inevitable.

“We call for global action to decarbonise shipping,” she declared in the report, adding that there is need to balance environmental sustainability, regulatory compliance and economic demands for a prosperous, equitable and resilient future for maritime transport.

The call from Grynspan chimes into the chorus of global voices against fossil fuels and the strident demand for transition to cleaner energy options, putting industries under pressure to reduce carbon footprint and avert catastrophic climate change.

The Oracle Today reports that the campaign for energy transition has been more pronounced against the transportation and industrial sectors which jointly account for over 70 percent of carbon emissions, and are also blamed for the prevailing extreme weather conditions manifesting in flooding and desertification.

Whereas significant progress has been made in developing new energy forms for automobile transportation, it is still a long journey for aviation, maritime and heavy industrial equipments.

In turning attention to the global maritime industry, UNCTAD pointed out that emissions from the global maritime fleet has increased by 20 percent in the past decade, calling for a rapid shift towards cleaner fuels across a shipping industry, where nearly 99 percent of the global fleet remains reliant on conventional fuels.

The International Maritime Organization clinched a deal in July to cut the shipping industry’s total annual emissions by at least 20 percent by 2030 and by at least 70 percent by 2040 compared to 2008 levels.

The revised strategy also aims for the industry to reach net-zero emissions “close to” 2050. That compared with the prior target for a 50-percent reduction by mid-century.

Head of Technology and Logistics Division at UNCTAD, Shamika Sirimanne, pointed at a big problem with transitioning shipping fuels, stating that little progress has been made with developing alternative shipping fuels from petroleum oils.

Sirimanne however noted that innovations have already kicked off in powering maritime vessels, with some 21 percent of new vessel orders designed for alternative fuels.

The agency stressed the need to step up the pace, despite substantial costs, stressing that over 80 percent of all traded goods in the world moved by sea, accounting for nearly three percent of all greenhouse gas emissions globally.

But the call for transitioning global maritime fuels come with significant cash call, topping $100 billion in annual investments and operating coats. The UNCTAD report found that some $28 billion would be required annually to decarbonise ships by 2050, and additional $90 billion required annually to develop supporting infrastructure.

In addition, full decarbonisation could raise annual fuel expenses by as much as 100 percent, potentially taking a heavy toll on small island developing states and other poor countries that rely heavily on maritime transport.