ICS Dismisses T&E Claim About Worsening Ship Efficiency as "Fanciful"

ICS said the claim that modern ships are less CO2 efficient than those built over 20 years ago was "fanciful".

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has called Transport and Environment's (T&E) recent claim that modern ships are less CO2 efficient than those built over 20 years ago as "fanciful".

The European environmental lobby group had based its claims on a report that it and the Seas at Risk organization had commissioned from CE Delft, but ICS says it used that consultancy's findings "very selectively."

The ICS statement goes on to say that the data used by T&E to conclude that modern ships are less efficient ends before the worldwide implementation of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), which took effect in 2013 to facilitate CO2 reduction measures.

ICS points out that as a result of fuel efficient operations, the latest IMO Green House Gas Study, published in 2014, shows that international shipping reduced its total CO2 emissions by more than 10 per cent between 2007 and 2012, even though maritime transport increased during that period.

"It is not helpful for T&E to twist the results of the CE Delft study to imply that the IMO EEDI, developed by the combined technical expertise of all the world's maritime nations, is somehow inadequate," said ICS.

"Modern ships, built in line with the EEDI targets which came into effect in January 2015, are required to be designed to be at least 10 per cent more efficient (compared to the agreed IMO reference line), while ships built after 2030 will be 30% more efficient."

ICS concluded that "This is something on which the shipping industry and its regulator, IMO, should be congratulated rather than criticized."

In 2012 Vice-President of the European Commission Siim Kallas and EU Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard said EEDI will not be enough to ensure shipping emissions are reduced fast enough.