Cooperation
Cooperating to reduce maritime emissions
MATTI REMES, Photo: Roope Permanto
Interest in low-carbon maritime freight is surging, says Matti-Mikael Koskinen from ESL Shipping. The company’s long-term partnership with Metsä Group offers the opportunity to invest in low-emission vehicles.
Matti-Mikael Koskinen , Managing Director of ESL Ship- ping, is at the helm of one of the leading dry bulk shipping companies operating in the Baltic Sea. It is an excellent vantage point for following developments in international maritime transport. A shipping industry veteran with two decades of ex- perience in the field highlights one trend in particular. Especially in Northern Europe, there is strongly growing interest in environmentally friendly maritime transports with carbon emissions that are as low as possible. “We want to be among the frontrunners in sustainable maritime transport and we plan to reduce our emissions by 50 per cent per transport unit by 2030. We aim for fully carbon neutral operations by 2050,” he explains. Common vision for reducing emissions Koskinen points out that close and long-term cooperation with customers is required to reduce maritime emissions. A good example of this is the partnership between ESL Shipping and Metsä Group, which has lasted for many years. The shipping company transports pulp, sawn timber and other wood products to European ports and wood raw material to Metsä Group’s production plants.
“Both companies have a clear vision for reducing envi- ronmental impacts. To cut emissions, we must invest in an increasingly environmentally friendly fleet. This, in turn, calls for a partner committed to long-term cooperation.” The most efficient vessels in their size category AtoB@C Shipping, a Swedish subsidiary of ESL Shipping, has placed an order for seven new vessels. Their greenhouse gas emissions will be nearly 50 per cent less per cargo unit transported than those of vessels currently in use. The Green Coaster vessels to be introduced in 2023– 2024 are energy-efficient electric hybrid vessels with bat- tery packs and shore-side electricity solutions that enable completely emission-free and noiseless port calls. They can arrive and leave the port running on electric power alone. The vessels are the world’s most efficient in their class. They have a deadweight capacity of 5,350 tonnes, a length of 90 metres, a beam of 16 metres and a draft of 6 metres. “In addition to being energy-efficient, the vessels have been designed to transport increasingly large cargoes.” Koskinen says pulp can be transported more efficiently because the cargo holds are considerably larger in rela- tion to the deadweight capacity than in older vessels. This
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