The purchasing alliance Zemba, an association of major sea freight customers, has launched a new tender for low-emission container transportation.
The aim is to promote the commercial introduction of e-fuels in the maritime sector, it says. The approximately 40 members of Zemba (Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance) are inviting tenders for a transport capacity of around 86 billion tsm (tonne nautical miles), which is to be provided using low-emission fuels from 2027. Around 1.5 million TEU are to be transported in transpacific traffic.
Leading shippers such as Amazon, Ikea and Tchibo offer guaranteed cargo volumes in return, including a surcharge on the freight rate. In return, fuels such as e-methanol would have to be used. Ingrid Irigoyen, CEO of Zemba, has now invited shipping companies and shipping consortia to submit their offers.
The contracts with a term of three to five years are due to start in 2027 and will reportedly relate to voyages from Asia to the west coast of the USA. This could save 470,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions, it is claimed.
Zemba want to reduce costs
The members of the alliance hope that this initiative will reduce the cost of e-fuels and improve their availability. They are therefore prepared to pay a surcharge on the transportation costs for e-fuels, which are significantly more expensive than conventional fuels. “Only when this market gets going will the costs fall,” says Irigoyen.
At the same time, Zemba is calling for these efforts to be supported by international regulations. The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) plans to discuss regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions again in April. At the heart of this is a CO2 levy that will apply globally in future – but the details are still being discussed among the member states.
In an initial tender in September 2023, the transport of 600,000 TEU was awarded. At that time, the requirement was that the fuels used should produce 90% fewer greenhouse gases over their entire life cycle. The winner for the transports between Singapore and Rotterdam in the period from 2025 to 2026 was the Hamburg-based liner shipping company Hapag-Lloyd.
Zemba and strategies for decarbonizing shipping were also the focus of the HANSA FORUM 2024in Hamburg.
