The multinational coalition now draws upon deep expertise from 12 top industry leaders to develop a fleet-specific fuel transition strategy for the intra-Asia container trade

The Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub welcomes a new partner, PSA Corporation Ltd (PSA),  to ‘The Silk Alliance’, a cross supply-chain maritime partnership dedicated to the development of a fleet-specific fuel transition strategy for container ships operating in Singapore and the wider Asia region, based on the Hub’s First Movers Framework.

Current members of ‘The Silk Alliance’ include shipowners, MSC Shipmanagement Ltd., Pacific International Lines (Pte) Ltd (PIL), Wan Hai Lines, X-Press Feeders, Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp.; shipyard, Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M); bunker logistical supplier, Singfar International; engine manufacturer, Wärtsilä; ship manager, Wilhelmsen Ship Management; and financial institutions, the Asian Development Bank and ING.

PSA is a fully owned subsidiary of PSA International Pte Ltd, one of the world’s leading global port groups and trusted partner to cargo stakeholders. PSA Group’s global network encompasses 160 locations in 42 countries around the world. The Group’s portfolio comprises over 60 deepsea, rail and inland terminals, as well as affiliated businesses in supply chain management, logistics, marine and digital services, which play a crucial role in developing a responsible and sustainable maritime industry.

With the inclusion of PSA , ‘The Silk Alliance’ is set to benefit from an even wider range of deep maritime expertise to foster industry collaboration in the establishment of a Green Corridor Cluster in Singapore and the wider Asia region. As a signatory to the Call to Action for Shipping Decarbonisation by the Global Maritime Forum’s Getting to Zero Coalition, PSA is also strongly committed to the mission of the Maritime Decarbonisation Hub to enable international shipping to achieve 5% adoption of zero carbon fuel by 2030.

Charles Haskell, Lloyd’s Register’s Decarbonisation Programme Manager, said, “Ports are nexus points in the maritime supply chain, providing the critical interface between importers, exporters, shipowners, logistics and transport providers, customs and other government authorities, and intermediaries such as freight forwarders. Ports are therefore uniquely positioned to become catalysts for the decarbonisation in a multitude of sectors, ranging from maritime, energy, logistics and transport.

“We are honoured to have the PSA, a global leader in the ports and terminals business, as a key member of ‘The Silk Alliance’ to help us assess the opportunities for lowering emissions across the maritime supply chain and developing a green corridor implementation plan to help maritime players of all sizes transition to zero carbon fuels and vessels.”

Ong Kim Pong, Regional CEO Southeast Asia, PSA International, said, “PSA is pleased to be a member of the Silk Alliance, joining other global maritime industry partners to pave a path towards increased maritime decarbonisation. As a trusted hub port and partner to global supply chain stakeholders, PSA remains steadfast in its commitment to the green and sustainable global movement of goods, including accelerating our digital solutions to enhance port and supply chain efficiency and resilience. We will continue to work with our customers and partners to scale up towards a greener maritime industry.”

‘The Silk Alliance’ was motivated by the partners’ shared belief that the maritime industry needs to strengthen leadership and foster collaboration that can demonstrate tangible actions in the deployment of zero carbon fuels and vessels at scale. Over the next few months, the partnership will work towards delivering learnings from focused studies and workshops to develop the strategy needed to transition intra-Asia shipping fleets to zero carbon fuels.