North American decarbonisation coalition takes aim at regional waterborne transportation

The coalition notes that while decarbonization is the key challenge the industry faces, decarbonising regional waterborne transportation through thousands of miles of inland, Great Lakes and coastal waterways across North America represents a different set of challenges to deep-sea transportation.

Concentrating on regional waterborne transportation across North America, the Coalition’s focus complements other organizations’ efforts targeting maritime decarbonization goals.

The coalition includes leading ship owners, builders, charterers, financiers, classification organizations, port authorities, as well as government and non-government organizations across the United States and Canada. The founding members include ABS (American Bureau of Shipping), Bay Houston Towing Co., Caterpillar, Centerline Logistics, Chamber of Shipping of America, Citi, Crowley, Green Marine, Holland & Knight LLP, Kirby Corp., Lloyd’s Register, Marine Money, Marsoft Inc., MIT Sea Grant, Moran Towing, OSG, Port Houston, Purus Marine, Shell, The American Waterways Operators, The Water Institute of the Gulf, Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, Wärtsilä North American, Inc., and Washington Maritime Blue.

“Blue Sky Maritime Coalition was born from the realization that the United States and Canada maritime operations are uniquely challenged by this goal of reaching net zero carbon emissions from maritime activities,” says David H. Cummins, Blue Sky Maritime Coalition President. “We believe that decarbonization is possible, but only if all stakeholders along this end-to-end value chain are willing to rally together to take advantage of the opportunities in this landscape and address these challenges through cross-sectoral collaboration.”