COVID-19 Hits Poseidon Principles Decarbonisation Goal Alignment

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Tuesday December 21, 2021

COVID-19's effect on the shipping industry has left less than half of Poseidon Principles signatories' lending portfolios in line with the IMO 2050 decarbonisation target this year.

Just 11 of the 23 signatory lenders reporting data have their portfolios aligned with the IMO's goal of halving total GHG emissions from shipping from 2008's levels by 2050, the Poseidon Principles said in an annual report on Monday. The data was gathered at the end of 2020.

"It is important to take the unprecedented years 2020 and 2021 into consideration," Stephen Fewster, treasurer at the Poseidon Principles, said in the statement.

"For some of us, this brought a positive change to our ship finance portfolio while for others, it increased emissions and the overall score we report.

"However, we do not believe that these events will alter the long-term ambition of the Poseidon Principles to encourage and help the industry to decarbonize."

The cruise segment appears to have caused a significant share of the misalignment, with ships moving very few passengers in 2020 while still consuming some fuel, appearing to show a large drop-off in fuel efficiency.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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