Maersk backs slow steaming

The world’s largest container liner Maersk Line is backing slower steaming as a response to rising bunker costs. Slow steaming is an efficient way to reduce bunker consumption, lowering operational costs as well as cutting CO2 emissions, according to Jesper Praestensgaard, CEO Asia Pacific of AP Moller-Maersk. Bunker bills currently account for about 50% of the shipping firm’s operating costs, compared to about 20% a few years ago, he said.

He admitted that Maersk Line was a “big contributor” to CO2 emissions, but he said slowing vessel speeds provided part of a solution. “Our customers want reliability and know we?ll be slightly slower. But we are still able to deliver reliable product even with slower speed.,” Slow steaming also allowed tonnage to be absorbed, creating a much tighter supply-demand situation, he noted.

He gave an example of a round trip on the Asia-Europe string from Shanghai to Rotterdam, saying slow steaming versus regular steaming would bring a reduction in CO2 emissions of 5,000 tonnes. Regular steaming for eight vessels travelling at 22 knots would consume 9,500 tonnes of bunkers and emit 30,000 tonnes of CO2. In slow steaming, nine vessels travelling at 20 knots would consume 8,000 tonnes and emit 25,000 tonnes of CO2, he said. Maersk Line’s ME3 service between Europe and the Middle East will be carried out by slow steaming from 7 June, with Maersk Kensington departing from Algeciras.