PSA Singapore (PSA) and Pacific International Lines (PIL) announced the completion of their first trial of low-carbon green shipments, in a joint effort to build a more sustainable end-to-end supply chain ecosystem, according to the company's release.
This pilot trial is part of the Memorandum of Understanding signed in October last year between the two long-standing partners to collaborate on green and sustainability solutions to decarbonise supply chains. The pilot consists of warehouse-to-warehouse cargo flow from Singapore to Chongqing via the International Land-Sea Trade Corridor. The containers, bound for Mitsui Chemicals Asia Pacific, Ltd’s beneficial cargo owner, were transported via PIL’s vessel Kota Ratna and PSA’s coastal terminal and rail nodes in Singapore, Qinzhou and Chongqing. Green levers utilised in this pilot include the use of biofuel on the PIL vessel, Kota Ratna, as well as landside supply chain optimisation by PSA.
The biofuel used for this trial, a blend of 24% used cooking oil with very low sulphur fuel oil, abated about 100 tonnes of carbon, equivalent to planting 4000 trees, and reduced the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) by 84.1%. With first-hand data on carbon emissions obtained from this pilot trial, PIL will be better equipped to assess how it can further lower emissions from its vessel operations, not just for its existing ships but also for its eight new LNG dual-fuel container vessels that will be progressively delivered from end 2024.
The PSA Port Ecosystem Business Division leveraged container barging, a greener mode of transportation as compared to trucking, to haul cargo from PSA Jurong Island Terminal to Pasir Panjang Terminal for onward shipment towards Chongqing. In addition, the use of container handling equipment powered by electricity and greener alternative fuels at PSA’s ports reduced emissions in the port area. The collaborative efforts by both partners across the end-to-end supply chain translated to planting one tree for every laden container moved across this value chain.
PSA Singapore operates the world’s largest container transhipment hub in Singapore, handling 38.8 million TEUs of containers in 2023. With connections to 600 ports globally, shippers have access to daily sailings to every major port in the world, operating 24/7 all year round.
Incorporated in 1967, Pacific International Lines (PIL) is ranked 12th among the world’s top container shipping lines and is also the largest home-grown carrier in Southeast Asia. From a modest ship-owner in Singapore, PIL has developed into a global carrier with a focus on China, Asia, Africa, Middle East, Latin America, Oceania and the Pacific Islands. Together with its affiliated companies Mariana Express Lines (MELL) and Malaysia Shipping Corporation, PIL serves customers at over 500 locations in more than 90 countries worldwide with a fleet of around 100 container vessels.