A free-to-access “Just-in-Time” shipping portal has been launched by the Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (Low Carbon GIA). It is hosted on the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 project website.
The concept of “Just-in-Time” describes a ship voyage during which a ship has sailed to a port with the least amount of fuel consumed, but which arrives in time.
Ships can sometimes sail quickly – which consumes vast amounts of fuel – only to arrive at port to find that the port is congested, or there is some other at-berth delay, and that there is no berth available for the ship.
If ships know a good time in advance en-route to a port that its berth will not be available then it can slow down.
Even a small cut in speed can save massive amounts of fuel. As seawater is much more viscous than air, going faster and faster requires the burning of ever greater amounts of fuel. So, for instance, a ship speeding up by one knot per hour from, say, four to five knots, will require comparatively little fuel compared to the same ship carrying the same cargo speeding up by one knot per hour from, say, 24 knots to 25 knots.
There are obvious environemental gains too. Cutting fuel consumption by 10% could save up to 30% of carbon dioxide emissions, according to the GreenVoyage 2050 Just-in-Time portal.
There are a wide range of reasons why berths might not be cleared in time for the next ship to arrive. These include contractual, port operational, data standard issues, and issues caused by stakeholders.
The new portal provides both port and shipping sectors with an overview of the just-in-time arrivals concept, including the main benefits, and general steps which can be taken towards its implementation in addition to key resources developed both by the Low Carbon GIA and other international organizations, such as the International Task Force on Port Call Optimization (ITPCO). The JIT portal can be accessed here.
Capt. Andreas van der Wurff, Port Optimisation Manager at A.P. Moller-Maersk and Chair of the Low Carbon GIA Ship-Port Interface workstream, says: “Just in Time (JIT) arrival allows ships to optimize speed during their voyage to arrive in port when berth, fairway and nautical services are available. This makes JIT an important tool for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships. After many years of work conducted by the Low Carbon GIA in this field, we are proud to launch this portal which centralizes all resources and tools alongside information around the benefits and how to implement the concept created to support anyone in the industry in adopting JIT.”
The Low Carbon GIA has been actively exploring the concept of JIT arrival through various research projects and several industry stakeholder roundtables under the Ship-Port Interface Workstream for many years. To-date, several resources have been developed by the Low Carbon GIA that focus on the JIT concept, including the “Just in Time Arrival Guide”, the “Just In Time Arrival – Emissions reduction potential in global container shipping” research study, and a short Just in Time animation video.
The portal will be regularly updated with new developments and available information and resources. In future, interviews with stakeholders from ports that have successfully implemented JIT will also be published on the portal where users can listen to their experiences and knowledge around the practical implementation of the concept.
The Low Carbon GIA is a public-private partnership that operates under the framework of the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 Project. The aim of the Low Carbon GIA is to develop innovative solutions to address common barriers to decarbonizing the shipping sector.
For any ports interested in adopting JIT, the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 project could offer further support, please contact gr*************@im*.org for more information.
