South Korea and US plan green shipping corridor by 2027

May 5, 2025, by Sara Kosmajac

A green shipping corridor across the Pacific Ocean linking the United States and South Korea is set to be established by 2027, the latter country’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) has unveiled.

According to MOF, the “South Korea-US Green Shipping Corridor Construction Implementation Roadmap”, as unveiled at the very end of April this year, outlines steps toward achieving net-zero shipping by 2050, building on South Korea’s existing energy transition framework.

As disclosed, the endeavor entails a collaboration between private and public sector players from both countries, namely, the port authorities of Busan and Ulsan, classification society Korean Register (KR), shipping major HMM, the Northwest Seaport Alliance, and the ports of Seattle and Tacoma.

It is understood that, within the scope of this initiative, the South Korean and the US side plan to implement a supply base as well as the necessary infrastructure for the ‘broader’ utilization of alternative marine fuels, such as ammonia and green methanol.

Specifically, approximately two years from now, the ministry has highlighted that a green containership route between the ports of Busan and Ulsan to the ports of Seattle and Tacoma will be kick-started, with vessels running on carbon-free energy sources between their destinations.

Earlier this year, the East Asian country’s government also announced that plans were officially underway to create a green shipping corridor between South Korea and Australia by 2029, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the parties.

The two nations’ governments explained that they would also work on responding to eco-friendly shipping-related issues at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), promote the creation and application of a sustainable fuel supply environment and foster exchanges between relevant organizations.

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Going further than this, in April 2024, maritime industry stakeholders from Asia, Europe and North America inaugurated the North Pacific Green Corridor Consortium (NPGCC), aiming to decarbonize supply chains between North America and Asia.

As informed, members of the NPGCC pledged to position the consortium as a catalyst for maritime decarbonization, exploring emerging markets and propulsion technologies for low-carbon fuels on the two continents, and demonstrating the potential carbon reduction had in ‘enhancing’ commercial collaboration.