Oilmar Makes First Carbon Credit Deal on New Offsetting Marketplace

ESG-NRG CEO Janek Ekeli was previously a trader for Dan-Bunkering. Image Credit: ESG-NRG

Dubai-based tanker operator and oil trader Oilmar Shipping and Chartering has completed the first deal on new carbon offsetting marketplace the Marine Offset Platform (MOP).

Oilmar recently bought 900 tCO2 of credits through the new marketplace, to be held in the company's wallet until it selects a voyage whose emissions it wishes to offset, Janek Ekeli, co-founder and CEO of Norwegian start-up ESG-NRG AS, which developed the MOP, told Ship & Bunker this week.

"We are thrilled to onboard Oilmar as our first customer," Ekeli said.

"Rakesh Sharma, Head of Business at Oilmar, has been active in the carbon market before and is interested in growing the sustainability space for their own customer needs.

"It's been a fruitful collaboration and we look forward to supporting them with more carbon offsets and platform features in the near future."

The platform has a range of features specifically built for maritime customers, Ekeli said.

"You can estimate vessel emissions for a voyage on a Tank-To-Wake (TTW) or Well-To-Wake (WTW) basis," he said.

"You can also account for other GHGs such as methane, nitrous oxide, and black carbon, and their global warming potential over 100 years or 20 years. In addition to allocating the emissions to different cargoes you may have onboard.

"We have already integrated with Dataloy's Voyage Management System, which means Dataloy customers can send route, cargo, and bunkering data on demand. Work is already underway on the next data connection."

More Transparency Needed

Ekeli said he has yet to find an example of a shipping company revealing the price they have paid for carbon credits, with many only referring to the registry on which the credits were issued.

"It's our mission at ESG-NRG to raise the quality of credits used by the maritime industry, and the key to that is transparency," he said.

"We share on the MOP's carbon ledger how you have reduced emissions with vessel retrofits and speed optimization, as well as the offset portfolio used for the voyage.

"That's how you convince the public you're serious about net zero.

"Telling the world you have purchased credits from an accredited project isn't enough any more.

"Use the MOP's integrated independent rating system to pick a project that you want to see on the front page of a newspaper.

"You don't want to be disappointed by a poor carbon strategy."

ESG-NRG AS was founded by former Dan-Bunkering trader Ekeli, former Carnival Cruise Line UX designer Arthur Pinault and a former developer from Norwegian Air Shuttle.

ESG-NRG completed their first equity raise earlier this year with Florida-based M&A investment firm Angeli Capital LLC and Norwegian venture capital fund TheFactory, in addition to securing a government grant from Innovation Norway.

ESG-NRG also participated in the accelerator program GrunderAcademy, ultimately winning the Demo Day competition for the Oslo region and a stipend from Sparebank 1 SR-Bank. Later in October, they will compete in a grand final for NOK 250 000 in Stavanger against seven other Norwegian start-ups.