Decarbonisation Technology - November 2021

There is a vast maritime sub-industry supporting world trade – from pilot boats and docking tugs to barges and other small coastal vessels

prevention of pollution at sea is MARPOL, adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in 1973, and later updated in 1978 after several severe tanker accidents. The convention includes regulations aimed at preventing and reducing pollution at sea, including both accidental pollution and pollution from routine operations. This convention has seen the designation of special Emission Control Areas (ECAs) where stricter controls on marine emissions have been put in place. These ECAs are generally designated in coastal areas where there are high level of shipping close to densely populated areas. The Baltic Sea became the first fully implemented ECA in August 2006, followed by the North Sea and English Channel, Canada, the USA and part of the Caribbean. Further ECAs are likely to be proposed for Norway, Japan, the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and the seas around Mexico, Korea and the Malacca Strait. A phased reduction of SOx emissions in ECAs saw the allowable amount of fuel sulphur reduced from 1.5% to 1.0% in July 2010, but further lowered to 0.1% by January 2015. 4 Outside of ECAs, the global limit of sulphur-in-fuel was reduced to 3.5% in 2012 and was further reduced to 0.5% in 2020 by the IMO. 5 In terms of NOx, an inevitable by-product of combustion, January 2016 heralded the stringent IMO Tier III emission limits for ships constructed after that date operating within the North American and US Caribbean Sea ECAs, with

the Baltic Sea and North Sea being added as of January this year. The Tier III standard represents a 75% reduction in NOx emissions compared to current Tier II engines. 6 These stricter environmental regulations are changing the way the maritime industry views conventional fuels. Many organisations are looking at gradually abandoning the use of polluting heavy fuel oils in favour of cleaner, more sustainable fuels with lower sulphur content. Movement towards natural gas as a marine fuel continues to progress, and conditions exist in some regions to make a near-term transition to GTL fuel feasible. Conclusion The maritime industry has now taken its place in the emissions legislative queue, with increasingly rigorous regulations being sanctioned to protect air quality in coastal areas near large conurbations. In the next couple of decades, leading up to electrification and specifically the use of green hydrogen as a marine energy source, GTL fuel represents a pragmatic, real-world and interim alternative solution to heavy-to-intermediate diesel fuels to help improve air quality without compromising efficiency.

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Susan Brownlow susan.brownlow@wordsforindustrypr.com