Worlds first ships to use operational CO2-Index

Five large containerships of Greek shipping company Costamare will be the first worldwide to operate in full compliance with MEPC / circ. 471 of IMO regarding operational CO2 indexing. Costamare has registered the vessels COSCO Guangzhou, COSCO, Ningbo, COSCO Yantian, COSCO Beijing and COSCO Hellas with Germanischer Lloyd’s operational CO2 indexing program.

On the basis of consumed fuel, transported cargo and distance sailed, CO2 emissions are to be determined using carbon emission factors. Computed index values can be compared to sister ships? indices and eventually be used to minimise emissions from transport. It is available for all GL classed ships and each ship owner and management company can check the complete status of their GL classed fleet using the fleet online portal.

“With the realisation of an operational CO2 emission indexing for ships, GL contributes significantly to the future wide implementation of such an index”, said Dr. Hermann J. Klein, Member of the Executive Board. “We are glad that Costamare Shipping is a leader in gaining widespread experience with the CO2 indexing methodology in general.”

With the implementation of the operational CO2 index on five ships, Greece’s major ship owner and largest containership operator Costamare Shipping Company S.A. demonstrates its commitment to environmental protection. The implementation of the operational CO2 index is one step to consistently reduce CO2 emissions. Applied on several ships of a fleet, it allows a comparison of CO-indices. This function in particular

is expected to trigger a learning effect as differences in fuel consumption will be made explicit and more transparent with the data associated to each vessel and voyage segment.

The new CO2-index tool by GL can be used today to record fuel consumption, transported cargo and distance between two consecutive ports. With carbon emission factors specified by IMO, the operational CO2-index is calculated for each voyage and later averaged for a defined period, usually a year. At the end of the period, a GL surveyor will check the recorded data and eventually issues a certified operational

CO2-index which is then valid for the next period.

Although shipping is one of the smaller contributors to global CO2-emissions, the inclusion of maritime transport in a future emission control regime is currently under discussion at international political levels and is assumed to become reality after 2012. The operational CO2- index for ships is considered as a future link towards market-based

instruments like, e.g., an emission certificate trading system.