Cruise & Ferry Review - Autumn/Winter 2021

COMMENTARY Fuel for the ferries of the future Michael Grey considers the options available to ferry operators as they contemplate how to make their vessels greener to comply with increasingly strict environmental regulations T he ferry sector has a well-deserved reputation for dealing with economic, technical and regulatory challenges. The existing fleet of ships that serve European routes have operated through huge increases in fuel price and specification, political changes and economic problems, such as the removal of duty-free sales which, on some routes, accounted to a third of revenues. Now, the sector must cope with the unknowns of a zero-carbon future, which will doubtless be accelerated by whatever may emerge from the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021. No longer can the shipping industry escape as a ‘special case’. Political leaders of all complexions are responding to the demands of the environmental activists whose views might previously have been considered extreme but are now firmly within the political mainstream. It is a particular dilemma for a shipping sector that has a record of carefully maintaining ships for decades longer than in other parts of the maritime industry. A 25-year- old tanker is a rarity, a bulk carrier of such an age overdue for recycling. However, a well- maintained European ferry of such a vintage is one that is considered as ‘nicely run in’. These ships are built to last and maintained to the highest standards. For a ferry operator contemplating new tonnage in today’s background of regulatory uncertainty, there are very real concerns about such investments. While the industry has MICHAEL GREY Michael Grey is a master mariner turned maritime journalist and has edited both Fairplay and Lloyd’s List in a career spanning more than 60 years. 8 8 DFDS has partnered with several companies to develop a fully hydrogen-powered passenger ferry for DFDS’s route between Norway and Denmark Photo: DFDS