Leaving None Behind In Shipping’s Transition To Green Fuel

 

H.E. Ambassador Albon T, Ishoda, Republic for the Marshall Islands

Statement to "The Getting to Zero Coalition[1]  7th December Webinar:  Synthesis of Shipping decarbonisation at COP26 and MEPC77.

 What does equitable transition look like in practice? That is a very good question and one that none of us have the answer to. Not yet! But it is critically important that collectively we find that answer. And find it relatively quickly.

 Mine is an atoll nation. 2m high. For us, the most climate vulnerable of all, it’s a very simple equation. Stay under 1.5 or stop being a country. Whether that means we will still have a flag to fly over a significant proportion of the world’s fleet is another question.

 At the International Maritime Organisation, we are finally coming down to the business end of the wedge. What is the Market-based Measure shipping will adopt? Will it really close the price gap with alternative fuels? And if it does, the most contentious question of all - what will we do with the very significant revenues that a successful MBM will inevitably generate? The World Bank tells us this is likely well north of $1trillion dollars in the next 25 years,

 While we do not have a clear agreed answer to how we leave none behind, we can all agree it is going to take a significant investment of both knowledge and finance. It certainly going to need more than $5billion over 10 years. There is a simple reality that must be addressed if we are to collectively survive the climate emergency we are in. The climate vulnerable cannot resist this emergency on our own economic reconnaissance. We have not caused our plight? The polluter is responsible?

 What is an equitable transition for my country and my region? Our micro-island states face real and unique problems – what will our alternative fuels and ships be? What are our solutions – not at global scale, but at our scale? We need you to help us if we are to have a chance. We need your new Moller-Maersk Centre and the new Singapore Research Centre to put a little of your research and knowledge into helping us solve our problems and training our students to solve our own problems. 

 I have a country half as big as the US but with only 50,000 people scattered amongst 1000 islands. Already we have the highest transport costs in the world? Will the solutions you are developing for Denmark, for China, for Chile work for us? Will we use Ammonia? Biofuel? Hydrogen? How will we make it? How will we store it? how much will it cost? How will we pay? We have all the same questions as you. Wont you help us find our answers too?

Ours is a global challenge. Time is short and we must not leave any behind. We look forward to continue to build this collation with you and thank you all for your collaborative efforts.  Now is the time for real action.


[1] GtZ is a coalition of leading progressive maritime industry actors working to have non-GHG shipping by 2030.  More than 230 industry leaders and organizations have joined the Getting to Zero Coalition's “Call to Action for Shipping Decarbonization”.


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