Transport secretary Mark Harper has unveiled package of clean maritime measures includes £1.5 million pot to boost the UK’s leading green shipping credentials.
Two new research hubs have also been to boost development of net zero technologies, including a specific Clean Maritime Research Hub led by Durham University, which is receiving £7.4 million government funding.
Harper said: “With 95% of the UK’s trade happening by sea, the maritime sector is vital to our country’s economic output but it’s also one of the biggest contributors to the UK’s emissions.”
Following the Clydebank Declaration for Green Shipping Corridors at COP26, a £1.5 million International Green Corridor Fund has been launched, in collaboration with international partners, including Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands, to make end-to-end green shipping a reality.
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Announced during London International Shipping Week, the pot will part-fund feasibility studies, with further match-funding from international partners and industry, to explore how to bring to life our commitment to decarbonise our international shipping lanes.
The corridors will act as a testing ground to encourage the development of vessel technology, shoreside infrastructure and regulations to better push industry towards decarbonisation – creating new jobs and opportunities for the sector to thrive, both economically and environmentally.
This work will go hand in hand with the new Clean Maritime Research Hub, creating jobs across UK academia and producing research that not only supports green economic growth but enables businesses across the UK maritime sector to get a head start in using clean technologies.
The hub, will further bridge the gap between academia, industry and think tanks, facilitating solutions to net zero challenges that face the sector.
Formed by a consortium of 13 UK universities and over 70 wider partners led by Durham University, the hub is backed by £7.4 million of funding from the Department for Transport and UK Research and Innovation.
The hub will receive also £1.85 million funding from the universities and will leverage a minimum of £9.7 million cash or in-kind private contributions with more expected over the lifetime of the programme until March 2027.
This partnership will ensure that industry leads the way towards greener shipping. Alongside this, a second research hub, the Net Zero Transport for a Resilient Future Research hub, has launched, looking specifically at developing affordable low-carbon transport infrastructure like charging stations or alternative fuelling.
