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New way of development thinking
The EU member states surrounding the Baltic Sea have launched a call for Motorways of the Sea project proposals. Backed by EU funding, the aim is to find solutions for effective transport chains in one of the world’s most dynamic growth areas. It is not only a question of intra-regional trade, the peripheral Baltic Sea region also needs cost-effective solutions, connecting this part of the European Union with the large Continental markets.

The task for shipping is enormous. There’s a continuous increase of cargo volumes to take care of and on top of this, politicians want to see existing cargo flows transferred from road to sea.

The latter depends on the maritime transport industry’s ability to develop cost-effective alternatives to long-haul trailer transports. Shipping must find new solutions to be able to offer attractive alternatives that are competitive in view of the flexibility and high frequency of road transports, but it is not only a logistic problem.

All research and development work must also take the environmental aspects into consideration. Shipping is the most energy effective transport mode, but it has one significant weakness and that is emissions to the air. If new maritime logistical solutions are based on higher speed, this must be achieved with reduced emission levels.

This calls for extensive research and development and innovation in areas such as new propulsion systems, alternative fuels, energy effective machinery and enhanced hull designs, not least by the shipbuilding industry and by ship equipment manufacturers.

A large number of initiatives have been taken and more are starting up, both publicly and privately funded. The launch of the Global Leadership and Technology Exchange, GLTE, by Wilh. Wilhelmsen, Xynteo, Pacific Gas and Electricity Company and Det Norske Veritas is one of those.

In a new way of thinking, this group of companies has decided to share solutions, technological breakthroughs and innovation to promote sustainable development, while at the same time improving the bottom line of their businesses. The aim is to improve energy costs, reduce emissions and transform logistics management.

Openness and collaboration might well be the basis needed for a future positive development of maritime transport, especially today when, to quote GLTE “the industry wrestles with the conflicting pressures of rising prices, increased competition and the demands of sustainable development”.

//Rolf P Nilsson