6 June ( Lloyd's List) - GLOBAL Shipping Business Network and Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation have signed a partnership agreement to collaborate on solutions for tracking and sharing emissions reduction and green fuel data.
The two organisations, backed by a group of shipping and port companies, will work together to identify use cases and co-design studies and pilots to demonstrate the effectiveness of sharing the data via a blockchain platform, according to a statement.
The move indicates that GSBN, a blockchain-enabled technology consortium designed to digitalise global trade, is seeing a new business direction in shipping’s carbon market.
“Traceability” is one key missing piece in today’s decarbonisation puzzle, where many shipping companies are promoting methods, such as carbon credits and the use of alternative fuels, GSBN chief executive Bertrand Chen told Lloyd’s List.
“I’m not saying that people will cheat, but it’s very hard to prove that you are actually doing the right thing.”
For example, a record is required to show not only that the amount of emission trimmed through burning green methanol or ammonia on a dual-fuel ship, but also that the fuel is indeed produced using renewable energy. And that information needs to be passed on by the energy producer all the way down to shippers.
The blockchain technology will allow the data, often commercially sensitive, to be shared on a single platform and only with consent between relevant parties, according to Mr Chen.
“So, I think actually GSBN can provide the infrastructure used to report the data from shipping lines, bunker supplies, agents, terminals among other stakeholders, he said. “It’s completely a new product and new direction, which I think is super exciting and interesting.”
The partnership deal will enable the secure and scalable exchange of data pertaining to decarbonisation initiatives, which is crucial to ensure compliance, access to green financing, and provide accountability of related investments, according to the statement.
“GSBN’s specialisation in data infrastructure complements our domain and technical expertise in decarbonisation, the combination of which will increase transparency and build stakeholder confidence in our collective journey towards zero-carbon shipping,” said GCMD chief executive Lynn Loo.
GCMD was formed with funding from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, alongside six founding partners — BHP, BW Group, DNV Foundation, Eastern Pacific Shipping, Ocean Network Express and SembCorp Marine.
The partnership deal comes after ONE joined GSBN as a member last week.
The latter was created by eight shareholders, including three China Cosco Shipping Corp subsidiaries, Shanghai International Port Group and Qingdao Port Group. The others are Hapag-Lloyd from Germany, PSA from Singapore and Hutchison Port from Hong Kong.
