Ship emissions accounting in the port of Singapore – a preliminary analysis (dry bulk)

Abstract

Shipping has been widely used worldwide as it is the most economically feasible mode of transport and is set to continue increasing in future. With Singapore being a top maritime capital, shipping will remain as one of the important functions of the Singapore economy and as such, will see continuous growth in this industry. However, being such a small country, the rising global demand for shipping service also means an increase in adverse impacts from shipping such as the ship emission, which would affect the air quality of Singapore. Therefore, this study seeks to carry out a preliminary ship emission accounting on a sector level, specifically the dry bulk sector in Singapore. Data from Automatic Identification System (AIS) are used, along with the activity of 100 ships – across the September to mid-October 2021 period – that was collected from public sources such as the MarineTraffic database and Clarkson’s Shipping Intelligence Network. The ship emission results are then examined to understand the relationships between emission amount and the major factors affecting emission. The major factors included ship capacity (deadweight tonnage), the time ships spent in the Port of Singapore, operating modes (hotelling, manoeuvring, cruising) and engine types. In conclusion, this study has practical implications at both the national and organizational levels. The findings from this study can assist shipping companies and port authorities in monitoring key pollutants and their emissions.