Hongkou District, a key hub for the maritime industry and a core area for high-end maritime services, is actively developing a green and low-carbon service ecosystem for shipping.
Following the establishment of the North Bund International Maritime Green Development Community on January 19 this year, Hongkou has continued to organize a series of green and low-carbon maritime activities to foster cooperation and exchange among market entities.
The initiative aims to build industry consensus, promote industrial chain extension, technological innovation, and standard setting, and actively communicate with the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
The Hongkou Maritime Affairs Office organized the North Bund Maritime Decarbonization Seminar on February 28. The seminar brought together representatives from national and international classification societies, ship owners, maritime authorities, shipbuilding, ship design, ship management, maritime technology, and finance leasing sectors.
The seminar focused on key issues and constraints in maritime decarbonization, aligning with topics to be discussed at the upcoming 81st session of the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC). Participants engaged in discussions on themes such as "the development and selection of future marine fuels."
Li Yanqing, Secretary-General of the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry, said green, low-carbon transformation, and digital upgrading are two major trends in maritime development.
The industry should not only focus on the development and installation of carbon capture systems on ships but also consider the application of shipboard carbon capture systems, including onshore reception facilities, carbon reduction discounts, and the industrial chain for CO2 recycling or deep-sea storage, Li said.
Feng Xianzhe, President of Zhongtai Energy Technology, saidt in the first 5-8 years of the green transformation period, the industry's focus will be on carbon capture and the use of CO2 to produce methanol, gradually shifting to the development of ammonia-fueled ships in the later stages.
Current production scales of bio-methanol are insufficient to meet the fuel supply for the maritime industry. Carbon capture systems on ships are expected to become more mature and widely adopted in the next 2-3 years, Feng noted.
As the region with the highest concentration of Chinese maritime service enterprises and the most complete maritime industrial chain, Hongkou has been actively exploring directions for green and low-carbon development in shipping.
Through organizing various activities and meetings, gathering industry information, collecting market demands, and creating an international exchange environment, Hongkou aims to facilitate the achievement of the maritime industry's "dual carbon" goals by connecting all links in the industrial chain.