Page 18 - European Energy Innovation - Spring 2016 publication
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18  Spring 2016 European Energy Innovation

    GREEN SHIPPING

is bound to increase a lot. In fact, the  place in 2010. It is important to extend   be taken into account when thinking
emissions from containerships are         the debate beyond Brussels to the          about the right incentives. Ships
expected to be the fastest growing        European capitals. Conferences are         often have to meet tight schedules
segment of marine shipping.               helpful to single out problems, bring      and cannot slow down. It is, however,
                                          together people with expertise and         vital that we find the right balance in
This is not to say that shipping is       initiate action.                           making changes. European companies
bad. The opposite is true. Almost 90                                                 are already facing increased pressures
per cent of the EU external freight       Existing regulatory barriers need to be    by global competitors and should not
trade is seaborne. Short sea shipping     identified and overcome. Generally,        be damaged.
represents 40 per cent of intra-EU        the obstacles can be categorized
exchanges in terms of ton-kilometres.     in technological, commercial and           Overcoming the barriers and
More than 400 million passengers          financial. Regarding the former it         achieving change is to a large extent
embark and disembark in European          needs to be seen what technologies         a question of culture. We need to
ports.                                    are on the market and how they can         establish the optimism it needs to
                                          be integrated. With regard to the latter   make reforms thrive. Last year’s
Shipping is most crucial for trade,       points, it needs to be assessed, which     agreement from Paris is good for
extremely efficient and we need it! It    incentives and pressures will facilitate   industries because it offers new
is, however, a crucial variable in the    the right decisions.                       markets with new potentials. Rather
climate equation. A holistic approach                                                than setting too many barriers and
is required, addressing all pollutants    There have to be commonly accepted         constraints, market-driven efficiency
and types of ships. Important steps       measurements and technical                 improvements should be the goal.
were taken with the Sulphur Emission      standards. Introducing the Energy          Given the enormous potential for
Control Areas (SECAs) in Northern         Efficiency Design Index in 2011, which     growth in green shipping a liberal
Europe. In these zones emission rates     set compulsory energy efficiency           market-driven approach is going to
were lowered significantly by using       standards for new ships, was the right     work. l
LNG or scrubbers. The same should be      step. In terms of new technology,
done in the rest of European waters.      weather routing, the use of auxiliary        Gesine Meissner (MEP/ALDE)
                                          power and a focus on aerodynamics            comes from the German state of
It is my firm conviction that we          are possible solutions. The EU has           Lower Saxony. She is the FDP's
can offer significant contributions       to support innovation in the field by        delegate for Germany's Northern
on a European level. After all, the       supporting projects with its research        and North-eastern regions in
European shipping sector is strong        funds. Regarding existing ships,             the European Parliament. She is
and influential. Moreover, a common       optimisation of maintenance and              the liberal group's coordinator
approach by European member               operational practices, such as regular       in the EP's Transport Committee
states would set the right signal! As     propeller and hull cleaning, can             and substitute member in the
liberal coordinator for transport and     also reduce power requirements. All          Environment Committee. Moreover,
president of the maritime intergroup      methods offer energy savings that far        she is president of the European
in the European Parliament I want to      outweigh their upfront costs.                Parliament's Intergroup on Seas,
push for the right steps.                                                              Rivers, Islands & Coastal Areas
                                          Commercial and financial                     (www.searica.eu/en/) as well as
Initially, the awareness for the problem  developments in the sector are related       president of Germany's Liberal
had to be raised. Much progress has       to the oil price. Policies need to take      Women. Maritime and transport
been made in this regard. Various         into account that the financial viability    issues are close to her political heart
parliamentarians and associations         for saving fuel depends on a specific        because of the sectors' immense
have hosted conferences on questions      price level. Moreover, the complex           importance for the future.
related to green shipping. My first       contractual arrangements between
seminar on LNG, for instance, took        proprietors and operators need to

1: Eurostat, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Analysis by Source Sector, Eurostat Online http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/File:Greenhouse_
gas_emissions,_analysis_by_source_sector,_EU-28,_1990_and_2013_(percentage_of_total)_new.png (Last accessed: February 2016)
2: COM (2013) 479 final, Integrating maritime transport emissions in the EU's greenhouse gas reduction policies, European Commission Communication http://
ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/transport/shipping/docs/com_2013_479_en.pdf (Last accessed: February 2016)
3: D. Hautmann, Dicke Luft auf hoher See, Fokus Online http://www.focus.de/wissen/natur/wie-schiffe-die-luft-verpesten-die-luft-ist-nicht-rein-auf-hoher-see_
id_5258156.html (3. Februar 2016)

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