The Mrsk Mc-Kinney Mller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping has welcomed Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto as a strategic partner of the center, committing to a long-term strategic collaboration and contribution to the development of zero-carbon technologies and solutions for the maritime industry.
Illustration. Image Courtesy: Rio Tinto In October 2021, Rio Tinto announced it will accelerate actions to reach net zero emissions from the shipping of its products by 2050 and expect to meet the International Maritime Organization decarbonization goal of 40% reduction in shipping emissions intensity by 2025, five years ahead of the IMO deadline.
The company expects to introduce net-zero emission vessels into its portfolio by 2030.
“This partnership shows the true potential of working with all the different parts of the shipping ecosystem. As a cargo owner and … charterer, Rio Tinto is in a position to make real influence in the industry by acting as a first mover, pushing for change and establishing sustainable valuechain solutions,” Bo Cerup-Simonsen, CEO of the center, said.
“Low-carbon transition is at the heart of Rio Tinto’s business strategy and … we recognize the importance of industry collaboration, innovation, and development of technologies in the decarbonization of our own shipping and the broader industry value chain. Through this partnership, we look forward to collaborating with like-minded industry experts to accelerate the delivery of our climate commitments on shipping and support the industry’s net-zero emissions ambitions,” Laure Baratgin, Rio Tinto’s Head of Commercial Operations, commented.
Recently, the mining group made another important step to decarbonise its fleet. On 23 May, Rio Tinto and British energy company BP agreed to work together on a one-year biofuel trial to help reduce carbon emissions from the former’s marine fleet.
Under the trial, BP is supplying Rio Tinto with marine biofuel for approximately 12 months. The results of the trial will help Rio Tinto study ways to reduce its carbon emissions from its marine fleet and inform its future biofuel strategy.