Maersk Product Tankers on track to cut CO2 emissions by 30% by 2021

Danish tanker owner Maersk Product Tankers has cut its CO2 emissions by 3.3 percent in 2020 with the help of its proprietary digital and technical solutions.

The latest decrease gives a total reduction of 28.7 per cent between 2008 and 2020 as measured on the Energy Efficiency Operational Indicator, the company said.

This puts Maersk Product Tankers on course to achieve its target of a 30 percent cut by 2021.

One of the critical solutions in the process of improving its environmental performance was the digital solution Optimise by ZeroNorth, according to Maersk.

Optimise uses complex algorithms to help operators optimise bunker spend, cutting at the same time CO2 emissions and boosting revenue.

As explained, the solution was used across the fleet and it now has the commitment of 1,500 vessels in tramp shipping to use it.

“Shipowners have to put in place comprehensive plans to reduce their CO2 emissions. We have an unwavering commitment to cutting our fleet’s emissions through partnerships and innovative solutions,” Christian M. Ingerslev, CEO of Maersk Product Tankers, said. 

Maersk Product Tankers delivered a record net profit of $ 160.7 million for 2020. The results show a major rebound from last year’s $92.4 million net profit despite a major impact of the coronavirus on the tanker market.

Specifically, the first half of the year saw a demand collapse for oil products boosting demand for storage which resulted in skyrocketing of freight rates. The second half of the year saw lower freight rates and a growing tanker fleet, which caused a supply-demand imbalance. 

“During one of the most volatile years in tanker market history, we delivered record-high financial results, and strengthened the company’s market position by optimising our fleet composition and performance,” Ingerslev added. 

The results were ascribed to higher freight rates, fleet composition optimization as well as reaping benefits from digital, commercial, and technical solutions to optimize fleet performance.

In 2020, the company completed a series of vessel transactions, including a sale-and-lease-back agreement on nine vessels.

In total, 20 vessels were sold and two newbuildings entered the fleet. The ongoing newbuilding programme will deliver nine LR2s over the coming years. 

The company’s revenue decreased to $ 663.6 million for 2020 from $727.7 million in 2019, mainly caused by a fall in freight rates during the second half of the year.

Maersk Product Tankers expects the market to remain subdued in the first half of 2021, but it can re-bound later in the year depending on the speed and effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out.