UK: Second Sustainable Shipping Operator of the Year Award for Maersk Line

Maersk Line wins its second Sustainable Shipping Operator of the Year Award.

The award, presented by Sustainable Shipping at an awards ceremony in London on July 7, was given to Maersk Line in recognition of its investments in sustainable growth, CO2 reduction and advancement in creating industry transparency.

 Soren Stig Nielsen, Head of Sustainability and Bo Cerup-Simonsen, Head of Maersk Maritime Technology, accepted the award on behalf of Maersk Line.

“The environmental impact of global shipping is a fundamental issue in our industry. As commercial trade continues to grow, we must challenge the way we think about shipping today. As an industry we have a unique opportunity to shape our own destiny by becoming part of the solution in a low carbon economy,” said Soren Stig Nielsen.

Maersk Line is advocating for far-reaching action to change the industry, also via its partnerships with customers and NGOs.

“As part of the Sustainable Shipping Initiative hosted by Forum of the Future and WWF, we need to develop a shared vision to help the industry transform and support sustainable development. We also need to assist IMO in developing progressive global regulation to address our common challenges,” added Soren Stig Nielsen.

Besides important partnerships platforms, an extensive suite of initiatives have helped Maersk Line deliver on its environmental commitments and cut CO2 emissions, since 2007 by more than 14% per container.

Maersk Line predicts further CO2 reductions from its investments in twenty 18,000 TEU container vessels, the so-called ‘Triple-E’ class, 16% bigger than the biggest container ship built so far. These vessels have the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 50% per container moved, compared to industry average on the Asia-Europe trade.

“I am pleased and delighted that Maersk Line was recognised for their leadership in sustainable performance – e.g. going beyond just environmental issues. And I look forward with my colleagues to continue working with Maersk Line on their journey,” said Dr Anne-Marie Warris, Lloyd’s Register.

“A richly deserved Award! More and more people now look to Maersk Line for clear and consistent leadership, and Forum for the Future is delighted to be working with Maersk colleagues through our Sustainable Shipping Initiative,” said Jonathon Porritt, Founder Director, Forum for the Future.

In 2009, Maersk Line won the Sustainable Shipping Operator of the Year Award for its leadership in slow-steaming.

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Source: Maerskline , July 12, 2011; Image: Sustainableshipping