Greener shipping impossible without clean fuel, vetted technology

The global maritime transportation paradigm is shifting toward more eco-friendly methods that harness cleaner fuels and generate fewer carbon emissions. However, slow progress in fuel supply chains and the development of technologies for future ships is delaying this big-picture transition, according to an expert from a Norwegian industrial risk management provider. Eirik Ovrum, principal consultant at DNV, said that although the testing of technologies to implement these fuels and deploy ships is not advancing at the necessary pace, the tests themselves are showing positive signs and the industry is on the right track. One major upcoming category of future ships in the pipeline is those using biofuels. Low greenhouse gas (GHG) fuels such as biodiesel and bio-liquefied natural gas (LNG) generate fewer carbon emissions than fossil fuels. These fuels are currently in high demand worldwide, but their global supply remains limited, according to Ovrum, author of “Maritime Forecast to 2050,” a report published by DNV. “Biofuels can range from only about a 50 percent reduction in well-to