In tramp shipping, a preliminary route is required for voyage planning at the pre-fixture stage (before a chartering contract is agreed). Such routes are conventionally designated by using pilot charts or software considering long-term statistical weather. However, it has been experienced by tramp operators that such route solutions often poorly estimated sailing distances for long journeys and thereby cause inappropriate cost estimation and bad voyage plan. To fill this gap, a data-driven methodology is proposed in this paper to establish a practical route library with the consideration of ship sizes, load conditions and seasonality. In this method, it first requires a dividing of ship trajectories into local sea passage and open sea passage. The voyage trajectories made of AIS points are then simplified to pattern nodes based on a speed-weighted geolocation method. Afterwards, the KMeans algorithm is deployed to properly classify these pattern nodes, identifying the most representative nodes (routes) in open sea passages. Simultaneously, the connection points are identified by DBSCAN algorithm, representing local sea passages. Combining the representative routes in open sea passages and the connection points in local sea passages, the most navigated routes between two ports are obtained. Finally, case studies are conducted for the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean respectively using global AIS data from tanker vessels to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of this methodology. The proposed route library is capable of providing reliable route references to support the decision-making at the pre-fixture stage.
Led by the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the EU, the shipping industry struggles to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to align with the Paris Agreement. Clean Cargo, the leading voluntary buyer–supplier forum for sustainability in the cargo shipping industry, developed some years ago a methodology to calculate and report the GHG emissions from containerships. The recently introduced carbon emission requirements by the IMO and EU have reinforced the members’ interest in a new Clean Cargo reporting mechanism that enables a more effective and efficient monitoring of the decarbonization progress. A better understanding of the user needs accompanied by due consideration to the regulatory environment and the technological advances are key to build this new framework. This paper builds on the case of the Clean Cargo initiative to (1) identify the stakeholders’ expectations and motivations for voluntary disclosure of environmental information, and (2) discuss the governance challenges of voluntary initiatives. A questionnaire was designed and deployed to investigate the current uses of Clean Cargo data and the information sharing among different stakeholders. Voluntary schemes can speed up the decarbonization process by proposing standards accepted by all actors of the global value chain. Clean Cargo members envision reporting on absolute GHG emissions per shipment as the way forward.
Maritime transport carries around 80% of the world’s trade. It is key to the economic development of many countries, it is a source of income in many countries, and it is considered as a safe and environment friendly mode of transport. Given its undisputed importance, a question is what does the future hold for maritime transport. This chapter is an attempt to answer this question by mainly addressing the drive to decarbonize shipping, along with related challenges as regards alternative low carbon or zero carbon marine fuels. The important role of maritime policy making as a main driver for change is also discussed. Specifically, if maritime transport is to drastically change so as to meet carbon emissions reduction targets, the chapter argues, among other things, that a substantial bunker levy would be the best (or maybe the only) way to induce technological changes in the long run and logistical measures (such as slow steaming) in the short run. In the
long run this would lead to changes in the global fleet towards vessels and technologies that are more energy efficient, more economically viable and less dependent on fossil fuels than those today. In that sense, it would have the potential to drastically alter the face of maritime transport in the future. However, as things stand, and mainly for political reasons, the chapter also argues that the adoption of such a measure is considered as rather unlikely.
In an effort to reduce carbon emissions from international shipping, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) developed its initial strategy in April 2018 setting ambitious targets for the sector. According to the initial strategy, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international shipping need to be reduced by at least 50% by 2050, and the CO2 emissions intensity by 40% by the year 2030, both compared to the 2008 levels. In order to achieve these goals, a combination of operational measures, investments in emissions abatement technology, and market-based measures will be necessary. The goals currently do not differentiate among different shipping sectors, and each sector faces different challenges. In this paper, we focus on short sea shipping (SSS), and on Ro-Pax services in particular that in general have not been examined thoroughly in the literature. We examine the emissions reduction potential of several measures, and we assess their efficacy compared with the targets set by the IMO initial strategy. The paper shows that the examined measures are not sufficient on their own to achieve the desired levels of reductions, and that a combination will be necessary, while technological solutions will need to be made more competitive through market based instruments.
This paper aims to conduct an updated literature survey on the Market-Based Measures (MBMs) currently being proposed by various member states and organizations at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) or by the scientific and grey literature as a cost-effective solution to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships. The paper collects, summarizes, and categorizes the different proposals to provide a clear understanding of the existing discussions on the field and also identifies the areas of prior investigation in order to prevent duplication and to avoid the future discussion at the IMO to start from scratch. Relevant European Union (EU) action on MBMs is also described. Furthermore, the study identifies inconsistencies, gaps in research, conflicting studies, or unanswered questions that form challenges for the implementation of any environmental policy at a global level for shipping. Finally, by providing foundational knowledge on the topic of MBMs for shipping and by exploring inadequately investigated areas, the study addresses concrete research questions that can be investigated and resolved by the scientific and shipping community.
This report provides a summary on the prospects for developing offshore logistics hubs and their evaluation as opportunities for the maritime and offshore industries. The report’s findings are based on respondents’ answers to surveys and focuses on when offshore logistic hubs will come into operation and their business potential. The data for this report is based on desk research and an analysis of survey responses. The report is produced by the PERISCOPE network.
This report provides an assessment on the prospects for offshore energy hubs. Four use cases have been developed and evaluated by respondents in a survey instrument for their forecasted time horizon to implementation and their business potential as opportunities for the maritime and offshore
industries. The report is produced by the PERISCOPE Group at Aarhus University for the PERISCOPE network.
A mixed integer linear programming model is presented for the operational level cargo allocation and vessel scheduling problem of a liner shipping company in Turkey, where flow-dependent port-stay lengths, transit times and transshipment synchronizations are considered. The proposed model aims to assign shipments to routes to decrease total tardiness and construct partial vessel schedules for establishing coordination with port authorities to comply with the berthing time windows. In addition to the mathematical model, novel valid inequalities and benders decomposition algorithm are implemented. Performance of the developed algorithm is evaluated on real-life problem instances. The results show that benders decomposition with valid inequalities yields the best performance.
In 2018 the International Maritime Organization (IMO) agreed to cut the shipping sector’s overall CO2 output by 50% by 2050. One of the key methods in reaching this goal is to improve operations to limit fuel consumption. However, it is difficult to optimize speed for a complete liner shipping network as routes interact with each other, and several business constraints must be respected. This paper presents a unified model for speed optimization of a liner shipping network, satisfying numerous real-life business constraints. The speed optimization is in this research achieved by rescheduling the port call times of a network, thus, the network is not changed. The business constraints are among others related to transit times, port work shifts and emission control areas. Other restrictions are fixed times for canal crossing, speed restrictions in the piracy areas and desire for robust solutions. Vessel sharing agreements and other collaboration between companies must also be included. The modeling of the different restrictions is described in detail and tested on real-life data. The scientific contribution of this paper is threefold: We present a unified model for speed optimization together with numerous business constraints. We present a general framework for handling routes with different frequencies. Moreover, we present a bi-objective model for balancing robustness of schedules against fuel consumption. The tests show that the real-life requirements can be handled by mixed integer programming and that the model finds significant reductions of bunker consumption and cost for large-scale real-life instances.
In the present work, the determinants of port choice regarding container cargoes from specific hinterland regions are analyzed, based on an empirical study of Spain. Previous work has been extended by including novel explanatory variables for the market shares of ports in hinterland locations. Discrete choice theory is the methodological approach used here. More specifically, a nested logit model is proposed. As potential explanatory variables, the model includes maritime connectivity to specific overseas regions and intermodal connectivity of the port to specific hinterland locations. The empirical analysis is based on detailed Spanish customs data. The analysis shows that all variables hypothesized to influence the market share of a port in a specific hinterland region (i.e., road distance to the hinterland region, maritime distance, maritime connectivity of the port, and intermodal connectivity of the port) indeed influence significantly its market share, with the signs as expected. The findings add to the understanding of port competitiveness in specific regions with three conclusions: First, port hinterlands are relational, in the sense that they depend on the overseas origin or destination of the cargo; Second, the analysis suggests that ports that predominantly handle transhipment cargoes may have a “transhipment orientation,” which is an impediment for reaching hinterland markets; Third, intermodal connectivity is a determinant of the market share of a port in a certain hinterland region.