Trading firm Trafigura has outlined a target to decarbonise its shipping operations as part of its 2021 sustainability report.
The company is aiming for a 25pc reduction in the intensity of its total shipping emissions by 2030 compared with 2019 levels. At the UN Cop 26 climate summit last year, Trafigura said it would convert six of its current fleet to use zero-emissions fuels, if technically feasible. It is working with German ship engine manufacturer Man Energy Solutions to develop a green ammonia two-stroke maritime engine by 2024, and last year it signed an initial deal with Norway-based fertilizer producer Yara to explore the use of green ammonia as an alternative bunker fuel.
Trafigura has also been experimenting with biofuels and LPG as alternative marine fuels, and it is advocating for slow steaming within a just-in-time arrivals system, as well as fixing vessels with short balance legs where possible.
The firm is among those calling for a carbon levy on conventional bunker fuels to allow alternatives to become cost competitive and accelerate the pace of the transition to low-carbon fuels. In September last year, the International Chamber of Shipping called for as levy as part of its Call to Action for Shipping Decarbonisation pledge. Trafigura was a signatory, along with Shell and Danish shipping firm Maersk.
Trafigura's shipping target is part of a wider plan to reduce its overall emissions. The company is targeting a 30pc reduction in its total operational (Scope 1 and 2) greenhouse gas emissions by 2023 compared with 2020 levels. It said it achieved a 20pc cut last year, equivalent to 700,000t of CO2, primarily by purchasing green electricity for its Nyrstar smelters in Europe. Trafigura is the majority owner of Nyrstar, which operates zinc, lead and other base metal mining and smelting operations.
