राष्ट्रीय हरित पत्तन एवं पोत परिवहन उत्कृष्टता केन्द्र

National Centre of Excellence in Green Ports and Shipping

Hong Kong’s Marine Department has launched the Green Maritime Fuel Bunkering Incentive Scheme to support early adoption of clean marine fuels like LNG and green methanol. Announced on June 30, 2025, the scheme offers up to HKD 2 million per company to cover costs such as risk assessments and initial bunkering operations. Part of the city’s broader green shipping action plan, the initiative aims to position Hong Kong as a leading green fuel bunkering hub in line with IMO’s 2050 net-zero goals. Highlighting its strategic location and established maritime infrastructure, the Marine Department sees this initiative as a step toward reinforcing Hong Kong’s status as a premier international bunkering port.

Denmark-based towage company Svitzer has taken delivery of its first fully electric tugboat, built by Sanmar Shipyards in Turkey. Named Sanmar ElectRA 2500SX, the vessel is based on a design by Canadian firm Robert Allan Ltd. and marks the 30th tug delivered to Svitzer by Sanmar. The 25.4-meter tug features a beam of 12.86 meters, a 5.4-meter draft, and is powered by a 1,818 kWh battery, enabling fully electric, emission-free operations. The delivery continues a long-standing partnership that previously produced advanced vessels like the remotely operated Svitzer Hermod (2016) and the high-tech Svitzer Taurus (2024).

In December 2024, Finland passed a law banning wastewater discharges from cargo ships into its Baltic Sea territorial waters, with the first phase taking effect on 1 July 2025. The initial ban targets sewage and open-loop scrubber wastewater, both of which pollute the fragile Baltic Sea ecosystem. The sea’s shallow, enclosed nature and low water exchange make it especially vulnerable to eutrophication caused by nutrient-rich waste. The Baltic Sea Action Group (BSAG), which supports the move, urges broader regional action. Sweden will implement a similar scrubber ban in July 2025, and Denmark is planning one. Finland now leads the region in curbing marine pollution from shipping.

The news article discusses the expansion of container turnover between India and Russia, highlighting a significant increase in trade volumes. Currently, the annual container turnover stands at 140,000 TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units). However, projections indicate that this figure is expected to surge 5.5 times, reaching approximately 760,000 TEU by 2042. This optimistic forecast was shared during a meeting at the Commercial Port of Vladivostok (CPV), which hosted a delegation from India led by Rajesh Sinha, the Secretary of the Indian Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways. The meeting underscores India's ongoing efforts to strengthen cooperation with Russia in cargo transportation, especially in light of the current geopolitical situation.

The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) completed the world’s first maritime pilot capturing and repurposing CO2 onboard a ship in China on June 25, 2025. Captured CO2 was transferred from one vessel to another, offloaded, and transported over 2,000 km to a plant in Inner Mongolia, where it was used to produce low-carbon calcium carbonate for construction. The pilot demonstrated the full carbon value chain, capture, transport, and industrial reuse, addressing regulatory challenges by reclassifying CO2 from hazardous waste to hazardous cargo. This milestone highlights a scalable pathway for maritime decarbonisation by integrating ship-based CO2 capture with sustainable industrial applications.