Maritime Shipping Announces Ambitious Plans at UN Climate Summit
Commercially viable zero emission vessels will be operating along deep sea trade routes by 2030. That is the goal of the Getting to Zero Coalition; a powerful alliance representing senior leaders within the maritime, energy, infrastructure and finance sectors, supported by decision-makers from government and IGO’s. During the UN Climate Action Summit in New York the coalition announced that they will lead the push for international shipping’s decarbonization.
International shipping carries around 80% of global trade and accounts for 2-3% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually. Emissions are projected to grow by between 50 and 250% by 2050 if no action is taken.
The ambition of the Getting to Zero Coalition is closely aligned with the UN International Maritime Organization’s Initial GHG Strategy. The strategy prescribes that international shipping must reduce its total annual greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% of 2008 levels by 2050, whilst pursuing efforts towards phasing them out as soon as possible in this century. This will ultimately align greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping with the Paris Agreement. The Coalition is committed to making this ambitious target a reality by getting commercially viable deep sea zero emission vessels powered by zero emission fuels into operation by 2030.
The Getting to Zero Coalition is a partnership between the Global Maritime Forum, the Friends of Ocean Action, and the World Economic Forum. The Coalition is supported by more than 70 public and private organizations.
“Decarbonizing maritime shipping is a huge task with no simple answer, but it has to be done,” says coalition member and CEO of Royal Dutch Shell Ben van Beurden. “We intend to be part of the long-term, zero-carbon, solution by seeking out the most feasible technologies that can work at a global scale. Starting now is essential because ships built today will stay on the water for decades.”