EMEA News
AltECA Benefits Outweigh Costs, Research Finds
Economic benefits would outweigh the costs if an Atlantic Emissions Control Area (AltECA) were to be created in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, new research has found.
The research, conducted by the International Council on Clean Transport and Porto University for Portuguese maritime administration and presented on the sidelines at MEPC82, noted that the costs of an AltECA were higher on distillates use as opposed to ultra low sulphur fuel oil. However, the research found that an overall economic gain of between Euro 0.8 billion to Euro 1.2 billion by 2030 was possible rising to double digits in the years ahead.
Maritime costs would rise by up to just over 1% and be spread unevenly depending on the commodity being transported, according to the research. The findings were based on the assumption that an AltECA would be in place from 2027.
ECAs limit emissions by imposing a 0.1% cap on sulphur in the fuel used by ships. They are currently in place in the Baltic Sea, North Sea and an ECA is set for the Mediterranean Sea.
If established, an AltEca would include maritime states bordering the northeast Atlantic Ocean stretching from Spain in the south to Greenland in the north.
