Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD)

Happy 59th birthday Singapore! 🎉🇸🇬   While GCMD’s work is global in nature, Singapore holds a special place for our organisation for many reasons! ❤️   🔹 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁, we are strategically based in Singapore because of the country’s dominant position in shipping:   • At 50 MTPA, Singapore is the world’s largest bunkering hub. Its bunkering volume exceeds that of the next nine largest hubs combined. • With a container throughput of 39M TEUs last year, Singapore is the world’s busiest trans-shipment hub. • Its maritime ecosystem is vibrant, with many key stakeholders across the value chain headquartered here; making collaboration easier.   🔹 Second, some of our initiatives are contextualised to Singapore:   • Our ammonia bunkering pilot safety study is contextualised to Singapore as we believe that the draft guidelines developed from this study will be extensible elsewhere. This is due to the stringent safety requirements of our ports, with proximity to dense populations and our waters hosting more than 1,000 ships a day. • We are scoping a ship-to-ship ammonia transfer pilot here because Singapore has indicated its ambitions to be a multi-fuel port in the future. • Recognising the growing potential of biofuels as a marine fuel, especially with the significant increase in the use of biofuel bunker blends in Singapore and Rotterdam, we launched an initiative that aims to provide quality, quantity and emissions abatement assurances across the supply chain for biofuels bunkered at these ports at beyond.    And our work has not gone unrecognised!   The Menon Economics and DNV’s “The 2024 Leading Maritime Cities of the world” ranked Singapore as the leading maritime city in the world. The report cites GCMD’s efforts for initiating “several world-leading projects including ammonia bunkering safety study, supply chain integrity for biofuels and LCO2 offloading” as contributing factors for Singapore’s ranking. 🏆✨   GCMD is proud to have contributed positively to the maritime sector in Singapore and we look forward to continuing to play our part! 🙌⚓️

And just like that, GCMD turned 3! We celebrated with food, drinks, and hearts full of appreciation for the team and the work we've accomplished so far. 🥳🍰🥂 Our journey is far from over, but these infographics offer a small snapshot of our achievements, also summarised by our CEO in one of her posts. https://lnkd.in/gQ4jDw_T Since our founding, we've been guided by our mission to execute our projects, built on four key pillars: 🏛️ 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: We've launched four initiatives underpinned by our transparent, deliberate, and practical approach to curate and demonstrate viable decarbonisation solutions from end to end.   🏛️ 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀: We've shared openly learnings from our projects at relevant national and international technical committee meetings to assist in drafting guidelines and standards, and participated in numerous platforms to share our findings.   🏛️ 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀: We've co-funded projects, such as those helping to develop safety standards and operating procedures to handle new fuels, to overcome roadblocks and lower adoption barriers for low- and zero-carbon solutions.   🏛️ 𝗙𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: We've provided neutral ground for stakeholders across the value chain to convene, growing our network to more than 100 centre and project-level partners. After our brief celebration, we're back to work, driven to achieve even more milestones by our next anniversary. With some of our projects wrapping up, we are preparing to share key findings and insights with the industry. In the meantime, please follow us, so we can keep you abreast of our activities and share with you our latest findings! 🔍📢  

“The energy transition is HARD,” says our CEO, Prof Lynn Loo, “but that’s no reason to not do anything about it”. 🌍💪 In a recent GovInsider interview, Prof Loo shared her experiences building GCMD and the valuable lessons learned with Si Ying T.: ▶ 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭: Turning one-off trials into accepted practices requires a mix of academic rigour and practical insights, plus clear communication to make complex ideas understandable. ▶ 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 100+ 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬: GCMD has grown from six founding partners to over 100 diverse stakeholders. Aligning these varied interests requires thoughtful dialogue and a focus on mutual benefits. As Prof Loo puts it, “We need to understand that at the end of the day, if people can’t make money, let’s stop talking about it.” ▶ 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐧𝐨𝐧-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐭: Prof Loo’s advice for effective engagement includes broad outreach, attentive listening to industry pain points, and transparent sharing of findings. Balancing consultation with conviction is key to advancing our efforts. Despite being only three years old, GCMD is proud of its milestones, thanks to the support of our partners and the dedication of our team. 🚀 A big thank you to Si Ying for visiting our office for this enlightening interview. Click the link here to read more! https://lnkd.in/gTz_8PiC

𝘖𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩: 🍽️ “𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘴𝘬. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.” “𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 ���𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘪𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱. 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘭𝘺𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘪𝘰𝘧𝘶𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦!” “𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘐 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦, 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨.” This summer, we welcomed seven talented interns to GCMD! 🌞🎉 Working with the Partnerships, Communications, and Projects teams at GCMD, our interns gained hands-on experience, a deeper understanding of the maritime sector, and the challenges it faces in decarbonisation. As the maritime sector strives to reach net zero emissions by 2050, this is the generation that will be in the driver’s seat. We feel privileged to harness and channel their passion and energy and help hone their skills so they – too – can support global decarbonisation efforts. While we are sad to see them go, in part because the organisation’s median age reverts to a much higher number 😭, we sincerely wish them all the best as they return to school. We hope they will continue to be ambassadors for maritime decarbonisation! Browse the photo album below to get to know them and see what a day at GCMD is like through their lens! 📸 Keen to pursue an internship opportunity with GCMD? Feel free to drop us an email here: careers@gcformd.org Joi Ann Yee, Aviel Lim, Sunney Gao, Shabab Tashrif Zaman, Dana Tan, Sheralyn T. and Shankhi Sinha. Choate Rosemary Hall, King's College London, National University of Singapore, Princeton University, Princeton Engineering, International Internship Program-Princeton University, Singapore Management University, UCL

We are pleased to share Professor Lynn Loo's interview featured on the North Bund High-End Interview Program. 🎥✨ This interview is part of the annual North Bund Forum, co-hosted by the Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government, scheduled to take place between 22-24 September. According to the DNV-Menon Economics report, "The Leading Maritime Cities of The World 2024”, the Port of Shanghai stands as the world's busiest container port for the 14th consecutive year. In that report, Shanghai also achieved other notable rankings: - 4th in overall ranking of major shipping centers - 4th in maritime technology - 2nd in ports and logistics services With Shanghai’s growing prominence as a maritime center, Yicai’s anchor Liu Ye discussed the following with Professor Loo: ➡ In addition to using green and low-/zero-carbon fuels, what other avenues are there to reduce GHG emissions? ➡ Given the substantial investments required for developing supply chains for various green fuels, is it more strategic to concentrate efforts on accelerating the adoption of a select few options, or should resources be distributed across a wider range of fuels and solutions? ➡ Multiple ports around the world have established "green shipping corridors" that prioritize the promotion of clean energy vessels, shore power facilities, and low-emissions operating models within these corridors. What types of developments are needed to realize such green corridors? ➡ How can we foster global cooperation to help accelerate decarbonization of the shipping industry? Watch the full interview here: https://lnkd.in/g4E9XPjT We extend our gratitude to Yicai 第一财经 and the North Bund Forum for the opportunity to share these insights.

Given ammonia’s toxicity, it is important to have a well-defined emergency response plan (ERP) to minimise the impact of accidental ammonia release and safeguard life, property, and the environment. Working closely with industry partners, GCMD has been developing a draft ERP specifically tailored to accidental ammonia release. Where do we begin when there is no precedent? Existing ERPs for oil and chemical spills can provide a valuable foundation, especially in areas such as tiered response levels based on the severity of release. This, in turn, determines resource needs and multi-agency coordination protocols. However, it is important to recognise that we will need to supplement these plans with procedures tailored to ammonia’s properties. Browse the visuals below for a preview of the ammonia release ERP that we have been working on with our partners, highlighting some of the scenarios when ammonia is released both into sea and air. Our CEO, Prof Lynn Loo, penned an opinion piece in the Business Times on the need to address safety concerns surrounding the handling and use of ammonia as a marine fuel. If you have missed it, you can read it here: https://lnkd.in/gpq-mmv3 Special thanks to the following partners for their support: ⦿ Oil Spill Response Ltd ⦿ BlueTack. ⦿ Stream Marine Training

A recent MIT study has raised concerns about using ammonia as a marine fuel. The study found that burning ammonia creates harmful by-products like nitrogen oxides. These oxides can form fine particulate matter, which contributes to air pollution and pose health hazards. Without new regulations to control these emissions, switching the global fleet to ammonia could lead to more premature deaths. Prof Lynn Loo was interviewed by TradeWinds regarding this study in which she shared the following views: → Robust regulations will need to be in place to ensure operational safety and minimise negative environmental and health impacts. → To strengthen the study, which relied primarily on experimental ammonia combustion data, real-world data from ship trials would add granularity. → GCMD’s safety study on piloting ammonia bunkering can serve to address this gap with real world data. The safety study contains location and configuration specificities that allow quantitative risk assessment. Building on this, GCMD is preparing to conduct pilots to transfer ammonia at conditions as close to bunkering operations as possible at key ports. → These learnings can help operationalise crew training, and develop safe handling procedures and emergency response plans to mitigate ammonia release. → Data from these pilots can help inform policy recommendations to mitigate the unintended release of ammonia and harmful pollutants that result from its use as a marine fuel.   To read this article, click here: https://lnkd.in/gF7GNSZ5

Announcement alert! 🌱✨   We're pleased to announce that we have completed our final biofuel blend supply chain trial! This marks the end of a series of trials initiated in July 2022 as part of a larger pilot to develop a framework to provide quality, quantity and GHG abatement assurances for drop-in fuels. Special acknowledgement to our partners: Hapag-Lloyd AG: For partnering with us on this final trial onboard TIHAMA, a 19,870 TEU container vessel. This final trial was our largest yet, involving the bunkering of 4,500 MT B30 blend of FAME and VLSFO. The consumption of this biofuel blend resulted in 27.9% emissions reduction compared to sailing on VLSFO. bp: For providing the B30 biofuel bend to the TIHAMA. The biofuel component comprised neat FAME produced from food waste and is certified to the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) standard. Authentix: GCMD collaborated with Authentix to develop and deploy a new organic-based tracer to authenticate the origin and verify the amount of FAME present in the blend. The proprietary tracer blended homogeneously with FAME and was detected at expected concentrations at all sampling points along the supply chain. VPS: VPS witnessed the operations at all stages, collected and conducted extensive laboratory tests on samples of the biofuel and biofuel blend collected at pre-determined points along the supply chain to assess quality per industry standards.    For more details on our final trial, check out our press release here: https://lnkd.in/gS95CF8D   Stay tuned as we prepare to share insights from these trials covering issues, such as traceability, biofuel degradation, supply chain optimisation and abatement costs. These findings will culminate in a comprehensive assurance framework to provide guidance on biofuels use, slated for release in the fourth quarter of 2024.  

Professor Lynn Loo shared with Georgios Georgiou of Η ΝΑΥΤΕΜΠΟΡΙΚΗ | NAFTEMPORIKI, Greece’s financial daily, her thoughts on the adoption of alternative fuels by different shipping segments. She shared that the initial adoption of alternative fuels will likely occur on pre-defined routes where advanced planning is feasible. Here, she highlighted the encouraging progress in commercial bunkering of low-carbon methanol with container ships: ➡️ In 2023, the Laura Maersk bunkered 1,000 and 300 tons of biomethanol in Ulsan, Korea, and Singapore, respectively. 🇰🇷🇸🇬 ➡️ With this experience under their belts, Ulsan and Singapore bunkered 3,000 tons and 1,340 tons of biomethanol to Ane Maersk and Stena Prosperous, respectively, this spring. ➡️ The Ane Maersk subsequently bunkered another 4,300 tons in Antwerp. 🇧🇪 Spot or tramp shipping, which tankers and bulkers fall into, face greater challenges as they have less visibility on the ports where they will bunker. Given uncertainties surrounding the availability and cost of low-carbon fuels, she emphasised the need for alternative measures, such as drop-in biofuels, onboard carbon capture and storage, and advanced energy efficiency technologies to help the industry meet its interim and 2050 net-zero goals. Prof Loo added that progress comes from learning-by-doing, and with confidence building. 📈✨ Read the full translated article here: https://lnkd.in/gdUrDaaZ Thank you, Georgios Georgiou, for taking the time to report on this. 🙏

🎙️ New #Catalyst podcast alert! Listen to the lively conversation between renowned writer and speaker, Shayle Kann, and Prof. Lynn Loo as they cover the challenges of decarbonising shipping. 🚢 ✈️ Drawing parallels and contrasts with the aviation sector, which has largely converged on sustainable aviation fuel, the duo discussed maritime's need for a diverse suite of solutions due to its heterogeneous nature. Shipping’s energy transition will require a portfolio of low- and zero-carbon fuels, energy efficiency technologies, and onboard carbon capture and storage. Topics discussed include: ⚡ Conventional fuels, like heavy fuel oil and marine gas oil ⚡ The inadvertent climate impact of cutting sulfur emissions ⚡ The pros and cons of lower-carbon fuels, like LNG, biofuels, methanol, and ammonia ⚡ The challenges for infrastructure and operations, especially involving the low volumetric energy density of new fuels ⚡ Onboard carbon capture and storage ⚡ How energy efficiency reduces the impact of low volumetric energy density 👉 Click here to listen to the podcast! https://lnkd.in/gaMJb2Ht