The sulphur competition

The new sulphur requirements will soon enter into force. It could be a competition on technology, economy and control, where shipping in Danish ports risks losing. Despite bright spots, most recently with the Danish authorities' work for a Northern European musketeer oath on enforcement of the new sulphur rules, Danish Ports continues to call for more international footing Sooner than we realize, the town hall bells will ring in a new year. New Year 2015 - and at the same time the cut-off date for the new sulphur rules around Denmark and Danish ports in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. On January 1, 2015, the requirement for maximum sulphur content in marine fuel will be reduced from 1% to 0.1%. The expectation is that the contribution to air pollution can be reduced by 90%, with a significant health benefit. Sulphur competition is not just about being the best at cleaner air. It is even more about technology, economics and control. Technology on board the ships, which must be ready and have adapted. Who will have the right and best equipment on board, what will ships and ports do with any residual products from flue gas cleaning? Can everyone be in place in time? Economics is about distortion of competition. Several governments are waking up to this. Most recently, the Finnish government has granted €4.5 million in aid to shipping companies that need to either install flue gas cleaning or convert their fuel system to meet the stricter requirements. Finnish shipping companies Finnlines, Viking Line and NLC Ferry hoped to receive €14.5 million in aid for 10 ships. However, even €4.5 million is a substantial subsidy. In addition to distortion of competition in relation to state subsidies, distortion of competition is also about competition between shipping routes and modes of transport. Danish Ports is concerned about the consequences. Will some ships bypass Denmark because they do not meet the requirements and instead send their goods the last mile by car? Will ferry routes cannibalize each other? Will planes win out over ferries when passengers need to travel around the Baltic Sea? This is still unclear. Then there are the controls. There have been concerns that there was insufficient regulatory control, allowing some to continue as before, while others run on the more expensive, low-sulphur fuel. Denmark could perhaps be ready to take the lead and take control. However, Danish Ports calls for a broader effort, so that it is not only port state control in Denmark that is tightened, but that the tightening takes place in all countries around the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. There must not be competition on control, so that it becomes too expensive and too difficult to enter a Danish port compared to ports around us. The Government's Growth Plan for Blue Denmark includes an initiative entitled "Strengthened enforcement nationally and globally". A good step along the way is that in early July, the Northern European countries took a "musketeer's oath", agreeing to cooperate to improve the efficiency of controls on ships' sulphur emissions. This may be a start towards a common level of control, and Danish Ports welcomes this. But there is still a need for a more international approach. For more information, contact Nete Herskind, Danish Ports. Source: ADP A/S