Hannes Johnson

Will the ship energy efficiency management plan reduce CO2 emissions? A comparison with ISO 50001 and the ISM code

The Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) is the sole international regulatory instrument expected to affect rising CO2 emissions from shipping in the short-term. In this article, we discuss present gaps in the SEEMP guidelines through a comparison with the international standard for energy management systems (EMS), ISO 50001, and with the International Safety Management (ISM) code, which sets requirements for safety management systems in shipping companies. We show that the SEEMP lacks crucial features found in typical management system standards, such as requirements on policy and management reviews. Moreover, best-practice in the form of the ISO 50001 addresses important aspects, such as monitoring, energy auditing, design, and procurement processes in much more detail. In the context of previous research on these instruments and on energy efficiency in general, we argue that these gaps may be detrimental to the success of the SEEMP, both from the societal perspective of CO2 abatement and from the perspective of companies’ success in energy management. This requires further attention by academia, policy-makers and industry.

Cost-effective choices of marine fuels in a carbon-constrained world: results from a global energy model.

The regionalized Global Energy Transition model has been modified to include a more detailed shipping sector in order to assess what marine fuels and propulsion technologies might be cost-effective by 2050 when achieving an atmospheric CO2 concentration of 400 or 500 ppm by the year 2100. The robustness of the results was examined in a Monte Carlo analysis, varying uncertain parameters and technology options, including the amount of primary energy resources, the availability of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies, and costs of different technologies and fuels. The four main findings are (i) it is cost-effective to start the phase out of fuel oil from the shipping sector in the next decade; (ii) natural gas-based fuels (liquefied natural gas and methanol) are the most probable substitutes during the study period; (iii) availability of CCS, the CO2 target, the liquefied natural gas tank cost and potential oil resources affect marine fuel choices significantly; and (iv) biofuels rarely play a major role in the shipping sector, due to limited supply and competition for bioenergy from other energy sectors.

Energy Efficiency and Fuel Changes to Reduce Environmental Impacts

Many different emissions from ships are directly related to a ships fuel consumption. This is particularly true for emissions to air, which are generated during the combustion process in the engines. Hence, improving the conversion process from fuel energy to transport work can be an effective means of reducing ship emissions. Solutions for reducing ship fuel consumption are generally divided into design and operational measures. Design measures primarily include technical solutions implemented when the ship is designed, constructed, and retrofitted, such as weightreduction, hull coatings, air lubrication, improvement of hull design, optimal propulsion systems and harvesting waste energy. Operational measures are related to how the ship or the fleet is operated and include measures such as weather routing, optimal ship scheduling, improved ship logistics, and on-board energy management. Although reducing fuel consumption always generates an environmental benefit, it should be noted that the use of different fuels results in different impacts on the environment for a given energy conversion efficiency. Another way to reduce emissions is therefore related to the type of fuel used on a ship, e.g., diesel fuels, gases, alcohols and solid fuels. However, choosing a fuel is not an easy process because it is influenced by a broad range of criteria, including technical, environmenta l and economic criteria.

Improving Environmental Performance in Shipping

This book addresses the environmental issues related to shipping and the natural environment, including descriptions of and proposed solutions to the issues. Currently, challenges exist that must be addressed if shipping is to become sustainable and fulfil the zero vision of no harmful emissions to the environment. In this chapter, we evaluate the steps that have been taken (if any) to limit the various environmental issues and discuss possible steps to be taken to improve environmental performance. Furthermore, future challenges must also be addressed, e.g., the current trend of increasing ship operations in the Arctic. In general, three factors could be addressed in order to reach environmentally sustainable shipping: regulations, technical solutions, and increased environmental awareness.

Emissions to the Air

Seeing the black smoke coming out of the funnel of a manoeuvring ship makes it easy to understand that the ship’s propulsion contributes to the emission of air pollutants. However, there is more than meets the eye going up in smoke. A vast majority of ships use fossil fuels, increasing a positive net contribution of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere when they are combusted. Because the fuels that are used are often of low quality and possess a high sulphur content, a number of other air pollutants are also emitted. Emissions to the air from ships include greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide), sulphur and nitrogen oxides, with both acidifying and eutrophication effects, and different forms of particles, with impacts on health and climate. However, not all emissions to the atmosphere from ships originate from the combustion of fuels for propulsion and energy production. The handling of crude oil as cargo and compounds used in refrigeration systems cause emissions of volatile organic compounds and ozone-depleting substances. The sources of the most important emissions and relevant regulations are described in this chapter.