German container shipping line Hamburg Süd has collaborated with its Swedish customer Electrolux for reducing the level of sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions in ports.
Last year, the companies launched the joint sustainability project with a pilot phase, which involved the use of Hamburg Süd’s 7,114 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) vessel, Santa Catarina.
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As part of the project, Santa Catarina used cleaner marine gas oil (MGO) instead of standard heavy fuel oil (HFO) to operate its auxiliary engines and boilers during its layovers in the ports of Manzanillo in Mexico, Callao in Peru, as well as the Iquique and Puerto Angamos ports in Chile.
The duration of the journey, which carried Electrolux’s cargo, was between 11 March and 24 March of this year.
Before embarking on the journey, Hamburg Süd and Electrolux performed a fuel upgrade with an aim to contribute to the protection of environment and health.
According to Hamburg Süd, as a result of the significantly lower sulphur content of MGO, SO2 emissions from the ship will decrease by more than 95%.
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By GlobalDataBoth the companies have provided funding for the project, with Electrolux bearing the additional costs for the MGO and Hamburg Süd providing the extra operative expenses related to planning and switching fuels.
Hamburg Süd CEO Dr Arnt Vespermann said: “When it comes to sustainability, reducing emissions in the interest of environmental protection plays an important role for Hamburg Süd.
“With this project, we are showing at the same time that Hamburg Süd is employing innovative solutions to meet the unique desires of our customers, in collaboration with them.”
Electrolux also noted that SO2 emission is regarded as a major environmental issue in some of the communities around port cities that receive their products.
The company’s partnership with Hamburg Süd will allow it to support its sustainability strategy ‘For the Better’, among other goals.
