Port of Gothenburg and North Sea Port set up green corridor, offer discounts for ships using cleaner fuels

Belgian North Sea Port and Swedish Port of Gothenburg have come together to establish a green corridor, aiming toward using alternative fuels for seagoing vessels by 2025.

The green corridor was launched on Gothenburg Port Day on 12 October, when the CEOs of the Gothenburg Port Authority and North Sea Port met in Gothenburg.

In order for the route between the two ports to become a green corridor, the Port of Gothenburg and North Sea Port are making adaptations to infrastructure.

These include sustainable fuels bunkering operating regulations and an increase in discounts on port dues for ships using cleaner fuels through their respective environmental discount systems.

“Traffic between Gothenburg and Ghent in North Sea Port has been at the heart of Scandinavia’s trade with Central Europe since the early 90s. Its significance just keeps on growing these are major volumes of goods that will now get a significantly reduced climate footprint“, says Elvir Dzanic, CEO at the Gothenburg Port Authority.

Daan Schalck, CEO of North Sea Port, added: “North Sea Port has expressed in its strategic plan ‘Connect 2025’ the intention, together with the companies based in the port, to reduce CO2 emissions in the port area and to be a carbon neutral port in 2050.

“The green corridor between North Sea Port and Port of Gothenburg is an initiative to achieve this goal. North Sea Port is committed to creating this green corridor by giving discounts on port dues for green vessels, by realizing an alternative fuels value chain with local production, import and storage of green fuels, and by facilitating bunkering regulations.”

The Port of Gothenburg is also already providing onshore power supply (OPS) at multiple terminals in the port, including for ships that serve Belgium. With OPS, ships do not need to keep their auxiliary engines running while they are in port, enabling zero emissions by the quayside.

Commenting on the green corridor between the two ports, Vincent Van Quickenborne, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the North Sea, said: “Belgium has been playing a pioneering international role in reducing sulphur and nitrogen emissions from ships for many years. Achieving reductions in ship emissions takes time and ambition.

“Less than a year ago at the COP26 in Glasgow, I signed the Clydebank Declaration with Sweden and 22 more countries. Today we have a global first with the world’s first green corridor between North Sea Port in Ghent and the port of Gothenburg in Sweden. As shipping will increasingly switch to alternative fuels such as methanol, the availability of these fuels and technologies will increase and also offer solutions for smaller ships.“