The shipping industry's importance to the global economy cannot be overstated, accounting for some 90 percent of world trade. Billions of tons of goods and products are transported by sea every year, from crude oil and natural gas to food and cars. However, global shipping is still reliant on heavily polluting fuels, with the sector contributing approximately two percent of
in 2020. If it were a country, global shipping would be the world’s sixth-
.
Global shipping GHG emissions are rising
International shipping emissions had a year-on-year growth of 4.9 percent in 2021, rising to approximately 700 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (MtCO₂). This was higher than 2019 levels, and accounted for roughly 11 percent of total
global transportation CO₂ emissions that year. Emissions from international shipping have risen almost 90 percent since 1990, owing to increasing seaborne trade and the growing number of ships crossing the world's oceans.
While GHG emissions within the shipping industry have been on an upward trajectory,
releases of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) have been falling since 2009 due to imposed
limits on sulfur content in marine fuels. Stricter regulations were introduced by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in 2020, lowering the upper limit of sulfur content to 0.5 percent (previously 3.5 percent). It is estimated that these new regulations could have reduced shipping SO₂ emissions by 77 percent that year, relative to 2019 levels.
Decarbonizing the shipping sector
Cutting emissions from sea transportation is seen as vital in tackling climate change and limiting global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In 2023, IMO member states agreed to reach
net zero emissions from international shipping by or around midcentury, cutting emissions by between 70 and 80 percent below 2008 levels by 2040 along the way. However, several countries have warned that this falls short of staying within warming limits, with small Pacific Island nations, as well as wealthier countries such as the U.S. and the UK, calling for cuts of 96 percent by 2040. Alternative fuels like green ammonia and hydrogen and the increased adoption of innovative
green maritime technology solutions, like high-tech automated wing sails, are expected to play key roles in decarbonizing the sector over the coming decades.
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