Gothenburg incentive encourages cleaner fuel

LNG-powered vessels will receive a total port tariff discount of 30% when they call at the port. The discount will come into effect in 2015 and will apply until December 2018.

“It has been our firm belief for a long time that LNG is the fuel of the future. This initiative is entirely in line with our ambition to reduce the environmental impact of shipping and create a substantial Scandinavian freight club,” said Magnus Kårestedt, chief executive at the port.

When using LNG, sulphur and particulate emissions are reduced to almost zero, nitrogen emissions by 85-90% and carbon dioxide emissions by 25%.

“It’s not technology that is the limiting factor, it’s the financial considerations. Working within the framework of the Zero Vision Tool project, we will attempt to convince other ports in the Baltic to offer the same type of support,” added Carl Carlsson of the Swedish Shipowners’ Association.

From 1 January 2015, conditions for shipping in the Baltic and North Sea will change with the introduction of new, stricter regulations governing the sulphur emissions. In response, the Port of Gothenburg will revise its port tariff.

Ships that maintain a high level of environmental performance will be rewarded. Two indexes will be applied as a basis for discounting: Environmental Ship Index, which is used by many ports around the world, and the Clean Shipping Index, an environmental index where the freight owners make demands on the shipping industry.

Elsewhere, the port is preparing for the construction of an LNG terminal, which is part of a joint venture with the Port of Rotterdam.