Hamburg, Busan and Ulsan ports team up on clean fuels on path to greener maritime future

Germany’s Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has signed a joint declaration of intent with the South Korean Busan Port Authority (BPA) and Ulsan Port Authority (UPA) to collaborate on the decarbonization of maritime transport in the future by expanding the use of environmentally friendly marine fuels.

The agreement between the three ports, signed on the sidelines of Hamburg’s First Mayor Peter Tschentscher‘s trip to South Korea, is said to be an example of global ports collaborating to achieve sustainable growth.

The three port organizations, which see themselves as ‘important gateway ports’ in their respective regions, want to work together on programs to reduce emissions in ports and on infrastructure improvements. They also want to jointly promote standardization in the use and bunkering of low-carbon ship fuels and work on digitalization processes.

The exchange on environmentally friendly practices, bunkering initiatives and marketing cooperation is also to be intensified.

“Together with the largest ports in South Korea, the Hamburg Port Authority is working on the future transport, storage and use of climate-friendly fuels in our port. This is a major contribution to the energy transition in the maritime economy and an important step on Hamburg’s path to becoming a leading hydrogen location in Europe,” Tschentscher commented.

“This agreement is another step on our path to making ports and ships pioneers of the energy transition. Decarbonization is not just about green ships, but about shaping shipping as a transporter of non-fossil fuels such as ammonia. I am pleased that our partners in Busan and Ulsan want to help shape this process together with us,” Jens Meier, CEO of HPA, said.

Back in 2010, the ports of Busan and Hamburg signed a sister port agreement. Through technical exchanges, they have been working together on the common challenges of decarbonization and digitalization in the port industry. The new agreement will help the ports in building ‘a stronger partnership’.

The Port of Ulsan is an energy hub with the ‘world’s largest’ liquid cargo handling capacity and provides fuel to ships calling at the Port of Busan. In particular, Ulsan Port’s abundant oil storage facilities are utilized for ship-to-ship (STS) bunkering.

In July 2023, Ulsan Port became the first in the world to supply green methanol to a containership and, in February 2024, it provided green methanol fuel to the world’s first commercially operated ultra-large containership.

In addition, the port plans to build a clean hydrogen and ammonia terminal at Ulsan New Port by 2030 to store ammonia to produce and supply hydrogen.

Last month, the Port of Busan successfully launched South Korea’s first simultaneous operation of LNG bunkering and containership cargo loading and unloading. On August 8, LNG bunkering vessel Blue Whale berthed alongside CMA CGM Visby, which supplied 270 tonnes of LNG by ship-to-ship bunkering.

BPA President Kang Joon-seok said that the new agreement is an opportunity for the Port of Busan to join Hamburg and Ulsan in the global eco-friendly marine fuel market.

“In the future, Busan Port will leap forward as a green port that supplies various eco-friendly fuels,” he noted.