More Green Ships Visit Antwerp Each Year

The Belgian Port of Antwerp is handling ever bigger number of environmentally-friendly seagoing ships each year, according to the results of the Environment Ship Index (ESI) introduced in Antwerp in 2011.

During the first nine months of 2015 the port had already granted discounts for 671 calls, up from 501 recorded in the past two years.

In 2012 there were 462 calls in Antwerp by ships that qualified for the discount.

ESI enables ports to grant a discount on port dues for ships that make a significant contribution to reducing emissions of pollutants such as NOx and SOx.

Antwerp was one of the group of ports that first introduced the ESI in 2010, along with Le Havre, Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Hamburg. The index, developed as part of the World Port Climate Initiative (WPCI), gives a score for ships that emit fewer pollutants than the legal minimum imposed by the IMO and EU.

The decision to grant discounts in Antwerp was one of the measures in the port’s action plan for particulates and NOx. In Antwerp a discount of 10% is accorded for all calls by ships with a score of 31 or more. The introduction of the measure is one of the initiatives taken by the port of Antwerp to promote sustainable enterprise.

The fifth anniversary of the ESI was celebrated at a meeting in Paris on 3 and 4 December, coinciding with the climate summit meeting being held in the French capital at that time.