A group of organizations in Washington State have launched the Sustainable Maritime Fuels Collaborative (SMF Collaborative). The initiative is led by Washington Maritime Blue, with the Port of Seattle, Northwest Seaport Alliance, Port of Tacoma, Washington Department of Commerce and the Consortium for Hydrogen and Renewably Generated E-fuels CHARGE.
The collaborative aims to accelerate the availability, affordability, and deployment of sustainable maritime fuels and low and zero-emission vessels and technology in the Pacific Northwest. It plans to help to guide the region’s maritime industry towards net-zero emissions by 2050. The Washington State Legislature provided funding to support the development of the SMF Collaborative.
The collaborative will convene representatives from across the maritime value chain. This includes community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations, the fuel industry, tribes, governments, ports, vessel owners and operators, labor, and workforce development organizations. Over the next 18 months, the Leadership Committee will expand to include diverse representation from all sectors involved in the sustainable maritime fuels value chain and establish a sustainable model for ongoing regional collaboration and action.
“Dual-fuel capable vessels are rapidly being deployed around the world, including 83% of the total orderbook for the worldʼs largest containerships,” said Captain Mike Moore, Vice President, Pacific Merchant Shipping Association whose membership includes ocean carriers and marine terminal operators on the West Coast. “The use of alternative fuels by these vessels now depends upon the development of standards and new infrastructure to produce, distribute, and deliver the fuels of tomorrow to vessels.”
The SMF Collaborative plans to: lead research along the value chain to accelerate adoption of sustainable maritime fuels; support policy development to enable practical deployment and use of sustainable maritime fuels; establish regional definitions and standards; enable first-of-kind demonstration projects; and foster innovation, identifying and supporting career-connected clean energy workforce pathways, and ensuring meaningful engagement with near-port communities.
“The Port of Seattle and The Northwest Seaport Alliance are eager to support the Sustainable Maritime Fuels Collaborative to advance the maritime energy transition away from fossil fuels and lay building blocks that accelerate the availability, affordability, and use of zero and near-zero emission maritime fuels in the Pacific Northwest,” said Port of Seattle Commissioner and Northwest Seaport Alliance Managing Member Sam Cho.
Suquamish Tribe Chairman Leonard Forsman said the tribe “supports the continued promotion of sustainable maritime fuels as part of the greater effort to reduce our collective carbon footprint and reduce impacts on our fragile ecosystems that sustain treaty resources.ˮ
