Some of top global commodities and energy traders on Wednesday launched an initiative to reduce and monitor emissions from ships they charter as efforts to cut the shipping industry’s carbon footprint. Seaborne transportation serves roughly 90% of global trade and accounts for 2.89% of the world’s carbon dioxide. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) aims at cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2050 from the 2008 baseline.
The initiative, called the Sea Cargo Charter, includes 17 companies such as Cargill, ADM, Bunge, Shell, Total, Equinor, Anglo American, Gunvor, and Trafigura. Every year, these firms will disclose whether their ship chartering activities are in line with IMO 2050 goals. The Sea Cargo Charter follows the Poseidon Principles launched in 2019, which includes 18 major global lenders. These financial institutions agreed to include companies’ emissions-cutting efforts in the provision of shipping finance.
