(Image Courtesy: MSC)
Ship Review platform, developed by Scope Group in co-operation with Green Maré Services Lda & Comandita, a maritime information and knowledge provider, allows ship owners and operators such as MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company to implement a scoring system to further measure and improve the environmental performance of their fleet.
There are many different internal and external pressures upon shipowners to decarbonise. These include international measures via the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO), and those at the national or regional level. One example is that for the first time, the maritime transport industry has been considered for inclusion within the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) by covering all ships above a gross tonnage of 5.000 calling on ports in the EU regardless of their flag. This is in addition to other proposed measures currently under consideration by the EU institutions.
“In addition to our massive investment in lower-carbon technologies and fuels, MSC continues to focus on improving energy efficiency. We have decided to leverage the Ship Review platform from Scope Group to provide better visibility on the environmental and broader sustainability performance of ships in our fleet. We want to assure for our clients that ships operated by MSC consistently meet the regulatory requirements and minimise impact on environment,” Diego Aponte, MSC Group President said. He continued: “MSC fully supports the proposed creation of a global multi-billion-dollar decarbonisation fund, overseen via the UN IMO, to provide financial capital for R&D.”
Ship Review provides environmental and sustainability assessments of more than 70,000 ships and was the first dedicated product to display Carbon Intensity Indicator ratings, one of the new IMO requirements being introduced to help the shipping industry hit its target of halving its carbon intensity by 2050.
“Ship Review offers an independent evaluation to the maritime market to meet the needs and requirements of all industry participants,” said Ralf Garrn, Managing Director at Scope Group. “We are delighted that MSC has decided to use Ship Review to create more visibility around the essential strategic goals and actions related to decarbonising its global fleet and making shipping more sustainable.”
A variety of existing and emerging internally driven, commercial, and regulatory requirements will combine to greatly increase the need to accurately measure and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships. A platform like Ship Review can significantly enhance the ability to do that, and to facilitate enhancements to improve overall environmental protection efforts such as undertaken by MSC.
In addition to measures related to decarbonisation, consumers and the financing industry demand more transparency on the social and governance aspects of ESG. Many of the UN SDGs include social aspects from good health and well-being to decent work and reduced inequalities. Ship owners and operators need to be ready to demonstrate performance on environmental and other sustainability factors, including a need to show that achievements are real and not only aspirational.
“With the help of the Scope Ship Review, we can better evaluate and report on the environmental and broader sustainability performance of our fleet,” said Diego Aponte. “We will encourage our customers, charter tonnage providers, and other stakeholders to join MSC in this initiative,” he added.
MSC has further expressed its confidence in the underlying concept of Ship Review by deciding to acquire a minority stake in GMS.
“We are very excited that MSC will take a minority stake in our company and support Ship Review’s provision of pollution and emissions fleet data. MSC’s cooperation will help us validate the platform’s estimated data and improve information quality,” said Milton Gouveia, Managing Director at Green Maré Services Lda & Comandita.
