Maritime
Decarbonisation, Coastal Shipping and Multimodal Transport
Roundtable Report, Policy Insights,
10 September 2023
Include coastal shipping in national decarbonisation strategies.
Support the sector’s decarbonisation efforts by reducing investment uncertainty.
Harness the regional development potential of coastal shipping.
Strengthen competition enforcement while leveraging maritime cabotage regulations.
The Potential of E-fuels to Decarbonise Ships and Aircraft
Corporate Partnership Board Report, Policy Insights,
23 January 2023
- Introduce carbon pricing for shipping and aviation.
- Scale up the production of low-carbon e-fuel through targeted policies.
- Accelerate the deployment of electrolyser and renewable electricity generation capacity.
- Regulate the lifecycle emissions intensity of e-fuels, including non-CO2 emissions.
Carbon Pricing in Shipping
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
13 December 2022
- Introduce carbon pricing in shipping as part of a broader set of decarbonisation measures.
- Consider designing a carbon pricing mechanism for maritime shipping as a "feebate" system.
- Complement carbon pricing with a technical design requirement and a low-emission fuel standard.
- Use carbon pricing revenues from maritime shipping to facilitate an equitable transition to zero emissions.
- Make sure that these pricing schemes and standards cover well-to-wake emissions.
Performance of Maritime Logistics
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
11 July 2022
- Improve competition monitoring in container shipping.
- Reconsider the competition arrangements for liner shipping.
- Focus regulatory attention on fair competition in door-to-door container transport.
- Increase transparency of container shipping rates and charges.
- Collect performance information on the containerised transport chain.
- Secure the strategic value of container shipping.
- Charge users of public maritime infrastructure more to increase cost coverage.
Dealing with the War’s Impacts on Ukraine’s Ports: How to Get More Grain to the World
Policy Brief, Policy Insights,
10 July 2022
- Ukraine is the world’s third-largest grain exporter but the war has rendered most Ukrainian ports unusable. Grain exports have plummeted.
- Many countries in Africa and Asia depend on Ukrainian grain. The drop in exports has driven up food prices and raised fears of shortages and hunger.
- Ukraine can shift some grain exports to European ports with spare capacity. However, rail transport is complicated because of different rail gauges.
- Exporting Ukrainian grain via foreign ports adds transport costs of USD 150 or more per tonne. This is triple the average intercontinental shipping cost.
- An international agreement creating safe maritime corridors in the Black Sea would best safeguard grain exports from Ukraine.
Mode Choice in Freight Transport
Research Report, Policy Insights,
27 February 2022
- Apply integrated policy approaches to create coherent interventions across freight-transport modes.
- Focus on mitigating external costs associated with each freight mode, rather than on modal shift as such.
- Improve the evaluation of policy interventions’ effectiveness to better inform measures that influence the choice of freight transport modes.
- Create fair competition between freight transport modes.
Container Port Automation: Impacts and Implications
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
7 October 2021
- Put more focus on flexible labour arrangements.
- Better identify the costs and benefits of port automation projects.
- Stimulate social dialogue and co-operation between employers and workers on port automation.
- Address social costs of automation.
Zero Carbon Supply Chains
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
27 June 2021
- A more proactive strategy from the port authority.
- Stronger involvement of the city administration in zero carbon freight.
- Facilitation of zero carbon freight transport by the federal government.
Navigating Towards Cleaner Maritime Shipping
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
15 November 2020
- Increase the energy efficiency of new and existing ships.
- Leverage public sector procurement to stimulate the electrification of short-distance shipping.
- Introduce regulations on lifecycle emissions of maritime fuels.
- Put in place carbon pricing for shipping and policies that can reduce the carbon content of shipping fuels.
- Advance the discussion on market-based mechanisms at the International Maritime Organization.
- Launch pilot projects to gain experience with new fuels and accelerate the adoption of safety guidelines.
Future Maritime Trade Flows
Roundtable Report, Policy Insights,
8 June 2020
- Ensure strategic planning for port development accounts for the key drivers of trade.
- Support policy for decarbonisation of maritime transport with carbon pricing.
- Prevent aid to maritime shipping from eroding competition in maritime logistics services.
- Improve maritime logistics via new performance metrics.
- Guarantee open standards when digitalising maritime logistics.
- Fine-tune maritime transport modelling.
Maritime Subsidies: Do They Provide Value for Money?
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
16 September 2019
- Re-orient and harmonise maritime subsidy policies.
- Clarify objectives of maritime subsidies.
- Make maritime subsidies more conditional on positive impacts.
- Design maritime subsidies in ways that avoid market distortions.
- Improve transparency around maritime subsidies.
The Impact of Alliances in Container Shipping
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
2 November 2018
- Adopt a presumption toward repeal of shipping-specific block exemptions from competition law.
- Improve project appraisal for port and hinterland infrastructure and adopt common principles for port pricing.
- Establish more coherent ports policies to clarify roles and reduce risk of creating over-capacity.
Container Port Strategy
Roundtable Report, Policy Insights,
2 October 2018
- Introduce demand-driven and flexible port planning.
- Assess the merits of developing new container ports thoroughly.
- Implement port-gate policies, such as truck appointment systems.
- Stimulate cooperation between stakeholders in the maritime logistics chain.
- In the Argentinean context, strategically assess the long-term location options for container ports.
Information Sharing for Efficient Maritime Logistics
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
25 September 2018
- Support the emergence of open standards in maritime logistics.
- Ensure interoperability between public and private systems for the exchange of logistics information.
- Support ports in creating co-ordination platforms and Single Windows.
- Ensure that digitalisation in the maritime logistics chain occurs in a competitive environment.
- Closely monitor cyber security vulnerabilities in maritime logistics.
Fuelling Maritime Shipping with Liquefied Natural Gas
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
22 April 2018
- Involve stakeholders in the development of policies governing LNG bunkering.
- Plan LNG infrastructure in a flexible manner.
- Stimulate international cooperation in LNG bunkering services.
- Mitigate negative environmental side-effects of LNG-fuelled shipping.
Reducing Shipping Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
17 April 2018
- Acknowledge the important role of ports in mitigating shipping emissions.
- Expand port-based incentives for low-emission ships.
- Link port-based incentives to actual emissions.
- Move to a more harmonised application of green port fees.
Decarbonising Maritime Transport
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
26 March 2018
- Set a clear, ambitious emissions-reduction target to drive decarbonisation of maritime transport.
- Support the realisation of emissions-reduction targets with a comprehensive set of policy measures.
- Provide smart financial incentives to advance the decarbonisation of maritime shipping.
Decarbonising Maritime Transport: The Case of Sweden
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
9 March 2018
- Make available more financial tools and incentives to support the decarbonisation of shipping.
- Increase public policy support for decarbonisation of the maritime industry.
- Upscale best practices in maritime decarbonisation internationally.
The Impact of Mega-Ships: The Case of Jakarta
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
8 December 2017
- Resolve bottlenecks elsewhere in the supply chain to increase efficiency.
- Open up domestic coastal freight transport to international shipping lines.
- Smart phasing in of next phases of the New Priok port project.
- Stimulate port investment in other parts of Indonesia.
Cruise Shipping and Urban Development: The Case of Piraeus
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
28 June 2017
- Develop a strategy to attract tourists to the city of Piraeus.
- Facilitate stakeholder co-operation to boost competitiveness of Piraeus as a cruise destination.
- Work to reduce the environmental impacts of cruise shipping on Piraeus.
Local Governments and Ports
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
23 May 2017
- Develop tailor-made governance arrangements for ports.
- Allow decentralised port governance to create additional benefits for local communities.
- Coordinate public port investment, nationally and where possible at a supra-national level.
- Ensure that ports not only focus on profits, but also take local impacts into account.
Cruise Shipping and Urban Development: The Case of Dublin
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
22 January 2017
- Implement the Alexandra Basin Redevelopment Project.
- Develop a joint cruise strategy for the whole city.
- Better exploit Dublin’s asset as potential home port.
- Resolve constraints related to cruise passenger flows.
- Develop a green cruise port policy.
The Impact of Mega-Ships: The Case of Gothenburg
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
11 January 2017
- Develop a focused national ports policy for Sweden.
- Make it easier for the Port of Gothenburg to attract direct calls by container ships.
- Resolve bottlenecks related to mega-ships.
Cruise Shipping and Urban Development: The Case of Venice
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
21 December 2016
- Create certainty about the future of cruise shipping in Venice.
- Develop a tourism strategy for the city including guidance on which tourists to prioritise.
- Develop instruments to contain the number of tourists in the city of Venice.
- Develop an action plan for extracting more value from home port passengers.
- Give a more structural character to environmental policies that have a discontinuous nature.
Reducing Sulphur Emissions from Ships: The Impact of International Regulation
Corporate Partnership Board Report, Policy Insights,
9 May 2016
- Harmonise requirements on maritime sulphur emissions with regard to compliance options.
- Apply sanctions for non-compliance with sulphur emissions regulations for ships that are sufficiently dissuasive.
- Inverse the burden of proof for compliance by prohibiting ships to carry heavy fuel oil except as cargo.
Capacity to Grow: Transport Infrastructure Needs for Future Trade Growth
Corporate Partnership Board Report, Policy Insights,
8 May 2016
- Develop planning tools to adapt to uncertainties: Good port planning means planning for uncertainties.
- Increase port capacity by optimising existing terminals.
- Take a holistic planning approach to improving port capacity needs as part of the entire supply chain.
- Use funding as a balancing tool in port capacity development.
The Impact of Mega-Ships
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
30 April 2015
- Cost savings from bigger container ships are decreasing.
- The transport costs due to larger ships could be substantial.
- Supply chain risks related to mega-container ships are rising.
- Public policies need to better take account of this and act accordingly.
- Further increase of maximum container ship size would raise ransport costs.
The Competitiveness of Ports in Emerging Markets: The Case of Durban, South Africa
Case-Specific Policy Analysis, Policy Insights,
1 November 2014
- Create an inter-departmental freight unit within the city of Durban that can bundle expertise and act as a one-stop shop for freight-related issues in the city. This unit could act as a vehicle to improve coordination on freight transport and engage in joint planning, aligning various actors including Transnet, SANRAL, the national and provincial departments of Transportation and the various departments within the city of Durban.
- Increase the autonomy of TNPA and streamline decision-making procedures within Transnet. This includes more financial autonomy, e.g. by creating a separate fund at the disposal for TNPA for port infrastructure and maintenance.
- Focus performance indicators on the performance of the whole supply chain. Currently much focus seems to be on part of the picture (e.g. crane productivity) without much consideration for (and sometimes even at the detriment of) other indicators.
- Undertake a comprehensive environmental port impact study and implement green-port mitigation policies if necessary
Déclaration des Ministres lors du Sommet de 2012 sur des transports sans rupture : développer les connexions
Summit Declaration,
2 May 2012