ClassNK grants ‘world’s first’ certification for ships using green steel

Japan’s classification society Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) has granted the ‘first-ever’ class notation for the use of green steel in a vessel to compatriot NYK Bulk & Projects Carriers’ bulk carrier Bright Queen, representing a ‘notable’ step toward the wider adoption of environmentally-friendly materials in the country’s shipbuilding sector.

As informed, the 13,600 dwt Bright Queen, built by Japan’s Higaki Shipbuilding, features JGreeX, a green steel product that compatriot JFE Steel Corporation developed.

The steel underwent a third-party certification process by ClassNK, which was responsible for verifying the technology’s compliance with the mass balance approach—a method used to allocate greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions across products to support broader decarbonization methods.

Believed to greatly cut down on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions during the manufacturing process, green steel has gained widespread attention from the maritime industry, in line with its efforts to reduce pollutants across the entire supply chain.

Yet, as green steel production continues with its upward trend, action is needed from both the steel and its demand sectors, including shipping. To start with, incentivizing the use of green steel would be ‘critical’ to driving up demand. This would, in turn, incentivize the material’s production. In addition to this, industry bodies have projected that interest in green steel could skyrocket as shipowners begin more and more willing to explore alternative options to minimize their Scope 3 emissions.

In response to the surging interest in green steel, ClassNK released its “Environmental Guidelines”, setting out notations for ships with enhanced ecological measures like the ‘a-EA (GRS)’ notation that indicates the use of green steel in ship structures and other components.

As for the Bright Queen, ClassNK stated that since emission reductions associated with the vessel’s steel were allocated through the mass balance approach, all environmental claims regarding the Panama-flagged bulk carrier’s materials can remain ‘transparent and reliable’.

Moreover, according to a statement from the classification society, the certification process is in line with Japan’s 2050 carbon neutrality target.

To remind, last year, Japanese shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line) showed interest in employing JGreeX for one of its newbuild bulkers.

This Ultramax bulker will reportedly be built by K Line’s compatriot shipbuilder Imabari Shipbuilding, with a projected completion date in 2026.