Photo: credit 119 has seen an approximately 11 per cent reduction, despite capacity growth of nearly 37 per cent over the same period. In 2023, the corporation pulled forward its 2030 carbon intensity reduction goal and is now targeting a more than 20 per cent decrease in carbon intensity by the end of 2026 (compared to 2019). “I don’t think we announce and get enough credit for what we are doing,” says Ljoen. “There aren’t many industries, shoreside or at sea, that can say they actually peaked and worked things out as Carnival Corporation has done.” Working things out includes using every technical means to lower the service load and the propulsion power. “We have ambitious plans; we are testing fuel cells and batteries, mostly with our German cruise line AIDA, which is making great progress on this front already,” says Ljoen. The subject of future fuels is never far from mind, and Ljoen reiterates what industry colleagues and competitors say: “At the moment there is no magic solution for us. LNG is the best fuel available for carbon reduction right now. The next thing we are testing is methanol. We know we can do it but there is no green methanol available, so we don’t see it in the future road map. We are not big enough to impact the global supply of green methanol, so we will work with our suppliers and networks that would support it.” Beyond this, the company is looking closely at experimental technology for onboard carbon capture. “It might not be 100 per cent, but it could be something that could lead to reduced carbon dioxide emissions,” says Ljoen. “The biggest carbon reduction at the moment comes from the exclusive destinations – such as Carnival Cruise Line’s Celebration Key – because their strategic locations near a variety of US homeports means we are reducing fuel usage by travelling shorter distances at slower speeds.” AIDA Cruises’ AIDAnova was the first cruise ship in the world to fully operate using LNG fuel when it began sailing in December 2018 “ Working out how to manage net zero is our number one priority”
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