The Issue of Extensive Carbon Emissions in Shipping

It is clear that excessive carbon emissions are a global issue affecting all countries, industries and people. While shipping may not be a leading contributor, it is still predicted to generate roughly 940 million tons of CO2 per year and is responsible for about 2.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions . This is projected to rise at a rate of 50%-250% by 2050 unless measures are implemented.

As the shipping industry continues to grow, so do carbon emissions – unless changes are made now. Keeping in mind that, with a lifespan of 20 years for the average ship, it is the current fleet that will produce over 50% of the total emissions by 2050. New technologies and ship designs may solve the issue for the future, but today’s vessels need their own approach – and it is in data that the answers will be found.

GHG Regulations & the CII rating

In 2018, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) developed an initial strategy for reducing Green House Gases (GHG) emissions from ships.

One of the goals of this strategy is to reduce CO2 emissions per transport work, as an average across international shipping, by 40% minimum by 2030 compared to 2008.

A key tool that will be used to achieve these targets is the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII). Using data from 2023 onwards, ships will report their Annual Efficiency Ratio (AER) at the end of the year. This value and the ship type will result in a CII rating given from A (the best) to E (the worst). The CII rating will have serious consequences on the commercial attractiveness of the ship, not to mention time limits for how long you can remain in the lower bands.

Optimizing Vessel CO₂ Output and Fuel Consumption

According to IMO’s initial strategy, there are multiple ways to reduce the carbon footprint of a vessel. These ways include voyage optimization, energy management, speed optimization and many others (see the figure below).

Squeezed between the pressures of the economic crisis, an oversupply of ships in certain sectors, and an onslaught of regional and international regulations aimed at reducing shipping’s impact on climate change, many ship owners and managers have been looking for innovative solutions that will help them comply with regulations and at the same time increase their influence in the industry.

Oriani Partners with VesOPS to Help Greek Shipping Companies Reduce their GHG Emissions

VesOPS has developed a software focused on the detailed performance analysis of the ship. Designed to work with anything from one daily noon-report to huge volumes of high frequency sensor data – the software compares live performance against a calculated baseline to provide the owner/operator a clear understanding of how the vessel is performing and what factors may be affecting it.

With this methodology the program provides accurate proven fuel consumption tables for multiple different conditions. This in turn supports operational decision making, including when to perform hull cleaning and propellor polishing, as well as commercial aspects, such as achieving best charter party terms for your fleet with a balance between daily hire rate and CII rating impact.

The key takeaway – use VesOPS to understand your vessel and fleet’s current CII rating and predict how that rating will be affected by future voyages. Take control of your operations from now to ensure that from 2023 onwards you will not be impacted by the ratings scheme and subsequent penalties.

VesOPS has trusted Oriani Hellas to officially represent them in Greece.