The Clean Energy Marine Hubs (CEM Hubs) Initiative were awarded the GREEN4SEA Initiative Award, according to the International Chamber of Shipping's release. The award recognises any organisation or association that sparked, realised, or significantly contributed with a specific initiative towards greener shipping.
The CEM Hubs initiative, which is co-led by a taskforce of CEOs, is a unique partnership between the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM), and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), intends to accelerate the production, transport and use of low-carbon fuels that will be transported by shipping for the world.
The CEM Hubs initiative is a first of its kind cross-sectoral public-private platform that was officially proposed at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) in Pittsburgh, USA, in September 2022. The initiative has already gained the support of the governments of UAE, Canada, Norway, Uruguay and Panama, and continues to build momentum.
In January 2023, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) also welcomed the initiative at its 13th Assembly in Abu Dhabi, and continues to expand its collaboration with ICS and partners in the shipping sector to further strengthen the CEM Hubs initiative and accelerate the use of renewables-based fuels in the shipping and other end-use sectors.
The initiative has now been formally adopted by CEM and will be formally launched as a CEM initiative at the 14th Clean Energy Ministerial in India in July, 2023. A work programme is currently being finalised, to be rolled out following the launch.
Also shortlisted for the award was Blue Visby Solution, for its efforts to eradicate the ‘’Sail Fast, Then Wait” (SFTW) operational practice; the Maritime Just Transition Task Force, for supporting social dialogue and stakeholder engagement to address climate change; the Port of Rotterdam, for making mandatory the use of a bunker measuring system; and the Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance, for establishing a common, global baseline for climate alignment of marine insurance.