MarineTraffic are proud to contribute to the Ship-Port-Interface Guide, which was released last month. 

The entire industry faces mounting pressure to comply with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) ambitious greenhouse gas strategy and to meet the significant cuts in ship emissions that are expected as part of the 2030 and 2050 targets. 

Related: [MarineTraffic Webinar] Reducing Emissions by Improving Efficiency in the Ship-Port Interface

The plan is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from vessels by at least 40% before the end of this decade – and by at least 50% before 2050 – compared with 2008 baseline figures. The eventual next step afterwards will be full decarbonisation. 

This undoubtedly will require the maritime community to work together. 

Developed by the Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (Low Carbon GIA) under the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 Project, the Ship-Port-Interface Guide focussed on eight practical measures which can support GHG emission reduction at the ship-port interface.

This Guide is a particularly useful document for shipowners, ship operators, charterers, ship agents, shipbrokers, port authorities, terminals and nautical services providers, and other relevant stakeholders who play an integral role in implementing the necessary changes and facilitating the uptake of emission reduction measures in the ship-port interface.

The measures suggested in the guide include:

1.Facilitate immobilisation in ports: Implementation of this measure would allow for maintenance and repairs of the main engine (ME) to occur simultaneously with cargo operations. This would contribute to a reduction in GHG emissions as it would optimise the time spent in port, therefore eliminating the need for the ship to transit to another location for work to be undertaken.

2. Facilitate hull and propeller cleaning in ports: Implementation of this measure would allow hull and propeller cleaning to take place in port, ideally simultaneously with cargo operations. This would contribute to a reduction in GHG emissions as it would optimise the time spent in port and eliminate the need for the ship to transit to another location for hull and propeller cleaning to be performed, as well as the reduced GHG emissions as a result of the hull and propeller cleaning itself.

3. Facilitate simultaneous operations (simops) in ports: Implementation of this measure would allow operations to occur simultaneously (e.g. cargo, bunkering, provisioning, tank cleaning etc.). This would contribute to a reduction in GHG emissions as it would optimise the time spent in port, as operations can be concluded in parallel rather than in sequence.

4. Optimise port stay by pre-clearance: This measure optimises the port call and aims to eliminate unnecessary waiting time by facilitating all required clearances in advance, thereby contributing to a reduction in GHG emissions through the optimised port stay.

Ships may experience operational delays on arrival, during port operations or at departure due to clearance processes in ports. The delays may need to be recovered in transit, often resulting in higher transit speeds, and thereby increased fuel consumption and emissions. Port stay optimisation can be supported by introducing pre-clearance of e.g. customs, immigration, port health or port authority formalities, avoiding waiting time to arrive, during operations alongside or to depart, in line with standard 2.1.2 of the FAL Convention: “Public authorities shall develop procedures for the lodgement of pre-arrival and pre-departure information in order to facilitate the processing of such information for the expedited subsequent release/clearance of cargo and persons.”

5. Improve planning of ships calling at multiple berths in one port: This measure aims to improve the planning of ships calling at multiple berths in one port, as is often the case with container feeder ships, chemical and parcel tankers. This measure aims to ensure:

Just in Time shifting of ships between berths; and Optimisation of cargo operations.

Addressing the planning would result in lower GHG emissions as the ship’s time under engine in port, the terminal operations, as well as all services ordered (e.g. nautical service providers), are aligned which result in improved port turnaround times and present an opportunity for bunker savings in a subsequent voyage to the next port of call, thereby contributing to a reduction of GHG emissions.

6. Improve ship/berth compatibility through improved Port Master Data: This measure involves improving Port Master Data to ensure that the right ship size is utilised, by:
a) Reliable identification of the terminal and berth.
b) Reliable maximum length and beam per berth.

Having the right ship size utilised results in lower GHG emissions per carried ton of cargo.

7. Enable ship deadweight optimisation through improved Port Master Data: This measure involves improving Port Master Data (depths, water density, tidal heights) to enable optimisation of the draught of the ship, eliminating unnecessary allowances and additional buffers in the Under Keel Clearance (UKC). Improved access to reliable and up to date Port Master Data allows for better optimisation of the deadweight capacity and therefore contributes to a reduction in GHG emissions per cargo ton transported.

8. Optimise speed between ports: This measure would allow for ships to optimise speed between ports, to arrive “Just In Time” when the berth, fairway and nautical services are all available. This “Just In Time Arrival” concept (JIT Arrival) will improve the port call process and ultimately reduce GHG emissions.

Related: Just-In-Time shipping reduces shipping’s carbon footprint

Through the application of JIT Arrival, GHG emissions and air pollutants can be reduced in a twofold manner:

• For the ship voyage through the optimisation of the sailing speed and hence more optimal engine efficiency resulting in lower fuel consumption; and
• For the port area as the number of time ships maneuvering in the approaches or waiting at anchorage is reduced.

You can download the full document here https://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/Pages/WhatsNew-1598.aspx