Sign up
Log in Sign up
This is a legacy page. Please click here to view the latest version.
Mon 24 Sep 2012, 09:17 GMT

Ships urged to switch to cleaner fuel in Hong Kong


Research finds that SO2 deaths would fall by 91% if ships used 0.1% sulphur fuel.

A new Hong Kong report, entitled: "A Price Worth Paying: The Case for Controlling Marine Emissions in the Pearl River Delta" has been released by Civic Exchange, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology's Atmospheric Research Center, and the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health.

The study took five years to compile and is the first comprehensive study into the impact of emissions from container ships, cruise liners and oil tankers in the Pearl River Delta region, Hong Kong and Macau.

According to the report, which was financed by the New York-based Rockefeller Brothers Fund, sulphur dioxide emitted from ships leads to 519 people dying each year in the delta region, 75 percent of which are from Hong Kong. A total of 93 die in the inner delta region, including Macau and Shenzhen, and 42 in the outer delta region including Jiangmen and Huizhou.

Civic Exchange's head of transport and sustainability research, Simon Ng Ka-wing, said: "Shipping is by far the most important source of sulphur dioxide pollution, more than that of vehicular emissions."

Lai Hak-kan of the HKU School of Public Health said the 384 deaths in Hong Kong each year as a result of the pollution by ships is "a very conservative estimate."

Emission hot spots were said to be the container terminals in Kwai Chung, Shekou and Yantian on the mainland, and the main fairways cutting through Hong Kong - the East Lamma Channel, Ma Wan Channel and the Urmston Road waterway going to Shekou.

Alexis Lau Kai-hon, director of the HKUST Atmospheric Research Center, commented: "The take-home message is really that Hong Kong is affected substantially by marine pollution."

At 15 micrograms per cubic metre, the inhabitants of Hong Kong inhale the highest level of the major pollutant, compared with 1-2 micrograms in Jiangmen, Guangzhou and Foshan, which are further inland.

"Secondly, the pollution is highest when the ships are at berth," Lau added.

Incentive Scheme

Starting from Wednesday, September 26, 2012, ocean-going vessels (OGVs) will be eligible for a 50 percent reduction in port facility and light dues if they switch to cleaner fuel in Hong Kong. The incentive scheme is expected to last for three years.

In order to qualify for the reduction, vessels will be required to switch from bunker oil to fuel with sulphur content of not more than 0.5 per cent for their auxiliary engines, boilers and generators while at berth in Hong Kong waters.

In 2011, approximately 32,500 calls to Hong Kong were recorded. They are subject to port facility and light dues based on their tonnage at $43 per 100 tonnes for every port call to Hong Kong.

Lau said the long-term goal was to designate local waters as an "emission control area" (ECA) and require ships within 185 kilometers of Hong Kong to use 0.1 percent suphur fuel. This would reduce deaths by 91 percent to 33 a year in Hong Kong, the research found.

To read the full report, please visit the following address below.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2439304/civicexchange/201209PriceWorthPaying_en.pdf

Container ship   Hong Kong  Hong Kong (HK) 
Ammonia bunkering at Port of Ulsan. Lotte Fine Chemical completes world’s first commercial ammonia bunkering at Ulsan  

South Korean chemical company claims to have established a complete green ammonia value chain.
London skyline. Propeller Fuels seeks bunker trader for London office  

Marine fuel supplier advertises for trader to manage procurement, sales and client relationships.
Windward Hamburg vessel. Fincantieri’s VARD launches first of four offshore wind vessels for Windward Offshore  

VARD 4 19 design vessel features battery hybrid propulsion and green methanol preparation.
Singapore Maritime Week panel session. Singapore industry leaders call for regulatory clarity on maritime energy transition  

SSA councillors highlight need for government support and clear policies to enable alternative fuel adoption.
Aerial view of container vessel at sea. Seaspan and Technolog unveil LNG feeder design with four-week ammonia conversion pathway  

Lloyd’s Register grants approval for a 3,370 TEU vessel concept designed for swift transition to zero-carbon fuel.
David Foo, MPA. Singapore’s MPA backs LNG as part of multi-fuel strategy for shipping decarbonisation  

Authority emphasises regulatory frameworks and workforce development as sector navigates geopolitical uncertainty and energy transition.
ABS and PIL sign MoU. ABS and PIL partner on book-and-claim emissions verification  

Classification society to verify fuel consumption and emissions data for shipping line’s alternative fuel claims.
Biofuel bunkering at Port of Açu. Vast completes first biofuel bunkering of tugboat at Brazil’s Port of Açu  

Be8’s BeVant biofuel claims up to 99% CO₂ reduction versus conventional marine diesel.
China’s Da Qing 268 vessel. Ningbo-Zhoushan Port completes first ship-to-ship green methanol bunkering  

Zhejiang province port facility delivered 503 tonnes of methanol to a container ship in one hour.
Ole Sloth Hansen and Arne Lohmann Rasmussen. KPI OceanConnect launches podcast series on bunker markets and geopolitical risk  

Marine fuel supplier debuts audio series examining commodity markets, trade route disruptions and Middle East tensions.

↑  Back to Top


 Recommended