The port authorities of Rotterdam and Gothenburg have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the realisation of a green corridor to support sustainable shipping between the two European ports.
The agreement was signed in Gothenburg, Sweden on 13 October, during a Dutch state visit to Sweden which took place in parallel to the chainPORTS summit in Gothenburg.
The MoU aims to further strengthen cooperation between the two ports on decarbonisation and digitalisation, contributing substantially to the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
“This Green Corridor initiative is part of our ongoing efforts to bring together parties across the supply chain to help realise more sustainable shipping in support of the Paris Agreement,” stated Allard Castelein, CEO of Port of Rotterdam Authority.
In fact, the port of Gothenburg has been facilitating methanol tankage for RoPax ferries on a smaller scale since 2015 and the port of Rotterdam launched the world’s first barge-to-ship methanol tankage operation in May 2021.
The parties intend to connect the Green Corridor between Gothenburg and Rotterdam to a larger network of deep-sea corridors, including the European Green Corridors Network, launched in March this year by the Maersk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero-Carbon Shipping.
Recently, Rotterdam also launched a large Green Corridor initiative with the Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore.
Elvir Dzanic, CEO of Gothenburg Port Authority, commented, “By fulfilling the pledges of the Clydebank Declaration from COP26 through green corridors, we can now present a more distinct path towards the decarbonization of shipping.”
