Aiming at green shipping

Shipping carries more than 80% of global trade while its CO₂ emissions only contribute to about 2.5% of the global total, which shows it is the best transportation means in terms of efficiency as well as environment-friendliness (IMO, MEPC 67/INF.3, p.12). But this figure will, unless regulated, increase to 17% by 2050 (TI, 2018, p.2). In response to this global serious concern, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) publicized its initial strategy for ship GHG emissions reduction in April 2018 and adopted associated short-term measures in June 2021.

In the DPR Korea far-reaching actions are being coordinated by the Maritime Administration of the DPR Korea (MA) to reduce CO₂ emissions from the maritime sector.

These days many countries, considering the cooperation between industrial, academic and governmental circles as indispensible for the national economic growth, effectively utilize financial, human and material resources of and political support from each other, which constitutes the world trend. In this context, MA ensures cooperation between all the consultative and academic entities concerned including the Korea Marine Environment Protection Center (KMEPC), Kim Chaek University of Technology (KCUT), etc. to utilize each other’s advantageous resources in well-balanced combination, aiming to develop short-term measures for ship GHG emissions reduction and to offer strategic service thereof.

Mr. Kil Yong Chol, Head of the Methodology Section of KMEPC, was invited by MA officials to attend the 76th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee of IMO as an observer in June 2021. Now he plans together with KCUT researchers to develop a smart system in which input of a ship’s parameters results in automatic output of ship specific operational or technical measures.

“In the past KMEPC used to get involved mainly in service for oil pollution damage response and legal consultation about marine pollution civil liability,” said he, “and, therefore, this service functions consigned by MA for development of hi-tech brought a sort of challenge to our business. But I am sure that we will successfully turn this challenge into an opportunity to improve the efficiency of KMEPC and, furthermore, to provide a springboard for raising our nation’s marine environment protection technologies up to ultramodern one such as zero carbonization or decarbonization.”

Under the close cooperation between academies and industries, MA plans to address in near future the mid- or long-term measures for ship GHG emissions including the carbon trade system and the like.