Decarbonising international shipping: At COP 27, European Commission provides additional €10 million

In the margins of COP27, the European Commission today announced an additional €10 million for a project to reduce international shipping’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The project, funded by the EU and managed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), began work in 2016, establishing five regional Maritime Technology Cooperation Centres (MTCCs) around the world. The centres promoted energy efficiency through national and regional capacity-building seminars, as well as demonstration projects (in Shanghai, Nairobi, Fiji, Trinidad and Tobago and Panama). The projects involved port energy-efficiency assessments, equipping port vessels with solar power, and establishing data collection systems for ship GHG emissions.

This project is part of the EU Global Gateway strategy, Europe’s offer for connecting the world through sustainable investments and reliable partnerships, boosting smart, clean, and secure links in the world, including in the transport sector, for instance with the external dimension of the EU Sustainable and smart mobility strategy.

The new funding makes possible a second phase of the project, focusing on portside energy efficiency measures. Pilot projects will install energy-saving technologies, such as LED lighting systems and shore-to-ship power supply. Bunkering facilities for alternative fuels may also be considered. This phase will also include the retrofitting of certain vessels: domestic vessels could be fitted with energy-saving technologies using wind and solar power, or alternative fuels. Two national pilot projects will take place in regions with a high concentration of Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries (the MTCC regions of Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific).

The project and the centres are included in the IMO’s 2018 GHG emission reduction strategy in the context of ensuring an equitable transition through technology assistance for developing countries. In the ongoing revision of the IMO’s strategy, addressing equitable transition will be key. The European Commission, along with EU Member States, advocates greater ambition so that global shipping emissions can be phased out by 2050.