European ports of Hamburg, Gdynia, Roenne, Rotterdam and Tallinn have joined an initiative that is aiming to define a template for the development of decarbonised shipping infrastructure that can be used in other regions
Green corridors have been recognised as a key enabler for shipping’s transition, and a statement from the initial members said the work directly supports the Clydebank Declaration announced during COP26 in Glasgow
Co-ordinating efforts, the Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping said the project would take a phased approach beginning with a pre-feasibility phase.
The pre-feasibility phase would, according to a statement on the initiative, "identify the potential routes, vessel types and fuels to establish high-impact green corridors in the region".
Once the routes, vessels and fuels to be used are defined, participants will "assess the technical, regulatory and commercial feasibility of the shortlisted routes" before eventually establishing green corridors in northern Europe and the Baltic Sea.
The ports who have thus far signed on to this particular initiative are all located within Europe’s North Sea and Baltic regions. A statement from the initiative said the group would attract additional public and private sector participants.
During the UN’s COP26 meeting on climate change in 2021, a coalition of governments pledged to create half a dozen zero-emissions green shipping corridors by the mid-2020s, but participation by operators transiting the routes is voluntary.
The coalition of 20 countries including the US, the UK, France, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and others said the green corridor designation and zero-emissions requirement does not apply to all vessels.
"For greater clarity, all vessels transiting a green corridor would not be required to be zero emissions or to participate in the partnerships," the COP 26: Clydebank Declaration for green shipping corridors policy paper published on the UK Government website said.
The mission statement for the Clydebank Declaration’s signatory states outlined a "collective aim" to establish at least six so-called green shipping corridors that would be in place by the mid-2020s, with the potential for more routes to be established later.
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