UK: Sustainable Shipping Initiative’s Vision Signed

The Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI), a coalition of global companies including Wärtsilä, and NGOs spanning across the sector, announced on October 31 the signing of a 30-year vision to secure the industry’s future, as well as the start of a joint work programme to deliver long-term sustainability. It is the first time shipping has taken such a wide-ranging approach to meeting the challenges that face the sector. With signatories representing over half a trillion dollars in market capitalisation, the move is expected to drive change across the industry.

As shipping supports 90 percent of world trade it has a huge impact on the future of sustainability of commerce. Sustainable Shipping Initiative was launched in 2010 to bring together players from across the industry.

The group represents ship owners and charterers, shipbuilders, engineers and service providers, banking, insurance, and classification – all of whom acknowledge that the industry will face changes and challenges in the future and needs to make long-term plans for success.

“Providing sustainable solutions is at the core of Wärtsilä’s activities. SSI offers us a great platform to team with industry players and work on areas that require coordinated action towards a more sustainable future,” says Jaakko Eskola, Group Vice President, Ship Power.

Vision an important starting point for more practical work

An important step towards this future was taken on October 31, 2011 when Vision for 2040 was published in London. Wärtsilä was represented by Atte Palomäki, Group Vice President, Communications.

At the launch event, SSI members called on industry participants to participate in the workstreams in order to promote the most active knowledge transfer possible.

Currently, the SSI signatories commit their knowledge and expertise as follows:

• Shipowning and operating expertise comes from BP Shipping, Bunge, Cargill, Carnival, China Navigation Co, Gearbulk, IMC, Maersk Line, Rio Tinto Marine, Tsakos Energy Navigation.
• Expertise on shipbuilding and engineering comes from Daewoo Shipbuilding and Wärtsilä.
• Financiers and insurers ABN Amro and RSA are committing expertise on finance.
• Lloyd’s Register will support the Initiative on technical standards.
• Unilever is providing the interface to the end consumer.

SSI’s key objectives for 2040

• Communities: To become a more trusted and responsible partner in the communities in which it operates;
• Employment: To provide a safe, healthy, secure and rewarding work environment to the people working in shipping;
• Energy & Environment: To diversify the industry’s energy mix and ensure greater resource efficiency; making dramatic reductions in greenhouse gas intensity, as well as ensuring responsible governance of the oceans;
• Governance: To promote greater transparency and accountability at corporate and industry levels;
• Innovation: To enable the financing of and large scale uptake of technological and operational innovations, that leads to a step-change in the sustainability of the industry.

All companies in the industry invited to join

Most of the actual implementation of the SSI’s vision will be happen through four work streams focusing on crafting practical solutions:

• Innovative financing models: Developing new finance mechanisms to enable faster roll-out of new technologies and innovation.
• Enabling a step change in energy technology innovation and uptake: Identifying and overcoming key non-financial barriers to the uptake of low-carbon technologies.
• Reducing the life-cycle impact of ships: A system for tracking and monitoring materials used and reused in ship building, with the aim of progressively phasing out unwanted materials and increasing opportunities and efficiency of recycling – and weeding out poor working practices.
• Standard of standards’: Producing an overarching framework and governance structure, to manage and align the growing number of beyond-compliance standards and rating systems.

SSI will call on industry participants to share the vision and join the work streams.

Project is coordinated by the Forum for the Future together with NGO Partner WWF. Forum for the Future is the UK’s leading sustainable development NGO. It works internationally with government, business and public service providers, helping them to develop strategies to achieve success through sustainability, to deliver products and services which enhance people’s lives and are better for the environment, and to lead the way to a better world.