Page 25 - 2021 - Q3 - Minerva in Focus

“

If owners and charterers are
to remain competitive, they

will likely need to demon-
strate that the vessels they
buy and operate are high
performers and that the less

efficient ships will be explor-
ing performance improvement
options.
”

Greenhouse Gases nancing in the near future. Shippers, too,
will increasingly be scrutinized for their En-
vironment, Sustainability, and Governance
The new reality goals. Their goals will likely be reflected in
their supply chains, causing them to priori-
tise the most efficient vessels.
The CII creates a downward trajectory on a
The maritime industry faces an unprece- The regulations that support decarbonis- ship’s carbon intensity, which is the amount
dented challenge in complying with the ing the shipping industry will do far more of carbon emissions generated by a unit of
IMO’s decarbonisation targets, but these than reduce carbon dioxide emissions; transport work, equivalent to one tonne of
2030 and 2050 milestones are only part of they will create a framework that rates cargo carried one nautical mile. The CII will
the story. which are the most efficient and which are assign all ships a performance category
the least efficient vessels. between A-E, but attaining a category does
With the focus so far on the Energy Effi- not automatically represent compliance.
ciency Existing Vessel Index (EEXI), the in- Vessels in the better performing categories,
dustry has yet to grasp the implications of A or B, may well be the beneficiaries of pos-
the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), which itive market sentiment. Category C repre-
will radically impact vessel operations for sents the regulation’s acceptable baseline,
decades to come. and vessels in the D or E categories will
Like the EEDI for newbuildings, the EEXI have to demonstrate improvement. More
is a filter, a process of assigning a value specifically, if the rating is E for one year
to a vessel’s design characteristics and or D for three consecutive years, the vessel
providing a goal-based means of com- will have to show improvement. Moreover,
pliance. Once attained through technical demonstrating continuous improvement
means, the EEXI is a fixed value, and its capability will require enhancing the ex-
implications on performance are easily isting SEEMP to include a minimum three-
understood. It can be difficult for vessel year implementation plan to achieve the
designers/owners/operators in terms of Required Annual Operational CII.
administration and technical compliance, If owners and charterers are to remain
potentially requiring verified adjustments competitive, they will likely need to
to a vessel’s power rating and investment demonstrate that the vessels they buy
in energy efficiency technologies. and operate are high performers and
Because it assigns an energy efficiency rat- that they will be exploring performance
ing to all ships, the CII effectively creates a improvement options for the less efficient
market mechanism that enables charterers, ships. Shipyards, too, will probably need
financiers, and regulators to grade various to prioritise higher efficiency vessels and
by Georgios Plevrakis ships. A vessel’s present and forecasted may have to improve their standard de-
signs to achieve the minimum acceptable
CII rating may be seen as an indicator of
Director of Global Sustainability, ABS a vessel’s suitability for purchase or refi- CII levels.

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