To meet the shipping industry’s decarbonisation goals, ports must play their role in reducing emissions. Ports are bound to be a key arena for the energy transition, given their role in green corridors and the production and distribution of zero carbon fuels. Ports can also support sustainability in the immediate term, by utilising digitalisation to reduce emissions and enhance governance.
Digitalisation gives ports new levels of flexibility to accommodate vessels’ arrival times and changing schedules, a vital tool in the current congestion crisis. By using software to automate the allocation of resources such as tugboats, pilots and workboats, ports can quickly respond and adapt to any changes in a vessel’s schedule – and ensure everything is in place to welcome it when it arrives. This reduces the amount of time vessels idle while waiting to berth, thereby reducing emissions from visitors to the port. Port management software can also reduce emissions within the port – by optimising the operations of the boats that work within the port to eliminate unnecessary journeys and cut fuel consumption.
In addition to this, port digitalisation also supports increased transparency and trust, while allowing ports to demonstrate their ‘good behaviour’ as responsible corporate citizens. Furthermore, the utilisation of data can be used to understand and highlight patterns in accidents and risk areas to improve safety.
Read the full article in Clean Shipping International.
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