Carbon Credits for Wind Propulsion?

We receive this week Hauke Kite-Powell, research specialist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and senior analyst at Marsoft Inc,  an independent maritime consultancy providing expert, objective and timely support for investment, chartering and financing decisions.

Industrial projects including solar and wind power issued more than $126 million in carbon credits in 2019. But so far, shipping has not taken advantage of the carbon credits funding opportunities.

Marsoft’s GreenScreen™ is a retrofit evaluation platform, developed in collaboration with the MIT, providing an extremely accurate assessment of the benefits of the retrofit.

GreenScreen™ was recently accepted by the Gold Standard – the preeminent global carbon registry – as the basis for issuing carbon credits for investments that reduce CO2 emissions from ships.

Will carbon credits bridge the gap and bring the missing incentive necessary to boost the adoption of wind assist technologies?

Airseas

We receive on the podcast this week Stephanie Lesage,  the General Counsel & Corporate Secretary of Airseas.  

Airseas, founded in 2016 by Airbus engineers, is developing one of the most promising technologies to harness the wind: the Seawing combines kite-technology with an automated flight control system developed by the aerospace industry. 

The timing could not be better:  the first Seawing is currently being installed on the Airbus vessel that will sail to Mobile, Alabama later this year for the first flight in live conditions. 

Zephyr & Boree

This week we receive Nils Joyeux, the CEO of Zephyr & Boree. A former merchant marine officer, Nils co-founded Zephyr & Boree in 2014 to offer low carbon transport services. 

Nils tells us more about Canopee, the 127 meter hybrid vessel that will carry the Ariane 6 rocket from Europe to French Guyana: it will be operated  end of 2022 by a joint venture Jifmar Offshore Service / Zephyr & Boree.

Nils also details the  hybrid vessels they are working on – Zephyr & Boree is undoubtedly one of the most exciting start ups currently developing in the shipping industry. 

The Mini Lace

This week, we are delighted to propose a fascinating discussion with Maurice Glucksman on the show. Naval architect by training , Maurice tells us more about his early career at the Wind Ship Company and his experience on board the Mini Lace, a tramp bulker that sailed off the East Coast in the early 80s when the oil crisis created a lot of interest in trying to take advantage of wind power to save on fuel. Through the eyes of an investor in 2021, Maurice reflects on the use of direct wind energy  onboard a ship and the associated risks, hurdles and returns on investments. More broadly, we discuss zero emission sailing cargos  and the alterations to the way the global supply chain is currently working. Thank you Maurice for your time on the show.

A slam dunk for the sailing ships

We are delighted to receive this week Dr Sergio Perez, PhD, a professor of marine engineering at the US Merchant Marine Academy. Sergio presents an update of a 1975 MARAD (U.S. Maritime Administration) report which concluded that commercial ships using sail power were not economically viable when compared with engine-powered vessels. The 2021 update concludes the opposite: it is economically smart to use sail at this point as a principal means of propulsion. “A slam dunk for the sailing ships, a no brainer with one thing which needs to be addressed: the height of the masts”  

Neoline

Zero Emission Shipping is around the corner! 

Last week, we presented the shipping route between Central America and North America soon to be offered by Sailcargo Inc  and its flagship Ceiba. 

On this week’s episode, we receive Jean Zanuttini,  CEO of Neoline, shipping start up based  in Nantes, France. 

Renault, Beneteau, Manitou, Hennessy, Michelin, Clarins, Longchamp – the list of Neoline’s  marquee customers onboarding on zero carbon shipping is impressive! 

Since announcing the construction of its first two 136m ro-ro vessel, Neoline has been closely watched by the shipping industry.  

Thank you Jean for telling us more about Neoline: the inspiration behind the project, the design of the Neoliner, the niche market you are addressing, the challenges of  financing such an asset, the operational model to fit your customers’ supply chain and much more!

SailCargo Inc

The SailCargo project has been on our radar since we launched the podcast; we are delighted to receive  Danielle Doggett, the CEO and co-founder of SailCargo Inc, on our 15th episode. 

Danielle, calling us from AstilleroVerde, the jungle shipyard in  Punta Morales, Costa Rica, tells us more about the construction of Ceiba, a cargo vessel designed to carry 250 tons of goods.  

Creating a shipyard from scratch in the jungle, bringing foreign investment in one of the poorest regions of Costa Rica are two of the many challenges overcome by Danielle and her team – an amazing and so inspiring project. 

Thank you Danielle, Lynx and John for making this live!

Vessel Due Diligence

In this week episode, we welcome Kris Fumberger, the head of sustainability and environment at RightShip. 

RightShip is used by charterers, banks, insurances to better understand performances of a vessel. Initially focused on safety,  demande for due diligence on the environmental side has been growing since 2012.  

Kris walks us through the GHG ratings methodology used at RightShip and the tools and analytics provided to  better understand vessel performance and associated risk.

Shady Ships

This week, we receive Madeline Rose, Climate Campaign Director at Pacific Environment to present the report Shady Ships – Retail Giants Pollute Communities and Climate with Fossil-Fueled Ocean Shipping.

Pacific Environment, a global environmental organisation dedicated to the preservation of communities and wildlife of the Pacific Rim, has been working on cleaner shipping policies for 15 years, with a consultative seat at the IMO for 10 years.  

“Everyone is talking about transportation decarbonization, i.e. how to electrify cars, how do we electrify trucks. That conversation has not extended to the seas. Ocean shipping is really getting a free pass in the public conversation about transportation decarbonization.”

Recognizing the retail companies, the actual cargo owners  are left out and not actively participating in the forums on decarbonization, Pacific Environment decided to  kick start a conversation on the responsibilities of the largest  retailers in the US . 

This initial investigation was produced to better understand the pollution and public health impact of maritime shipping, i.e. the shipping of  imported goods in the US: 

By importing goods to the U.S. on dirty, fossil fueled ships in 2019, just 15 retail companies emitted as much climate pollution as the energy use of 1.5 million U.S. homes.

“These major companies are hiding from the public the true amount of pollution they produce from their supply chain. Of the top 15 maritime importers in the US, only Ikea and Nike are reporting their ocean maritime emissions” 

“Amazon just launched Shipment Zero – making a commitment to their customers that there will be zero emissions of their products from the  warehouse to their front door. But they completely omitted everything it takes to get a product from Asia all the way across the Pacific Ocean to the warehouse”

Ocean Exchange

On 5 December 2017, the United Nations declared that a Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development would be held from 2021 to 2030. The Ocean Decade provides a common framework to ensure that ocean science can fully support countries to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

We are very pleased to receive this week Millicent Pitts, the executive director of The Ocean Exchange ™️, one of the many ongoing projects.

The Ocean Exchange ™️ was started 10 years ago: it is an optimistic, forward looking and solutions oriented ecosystem builder with the sole mission to help advance the adoption of innovative solutions for healthy oceans & resilient and sustainable coastal systems.

This summer, they have 4 awards for a total grant of $235,000, with an open call for solutions  helping ocean preservation as well as decarbonization of the maritime transport.

Deadline is August 23 for the Neptune and Orcelle Awards with each $100,000 award. Below is the link to apply – https://lnkd.in/dAU_nEUC