European Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport Partnership reports on record investments in 2023

The Partnership Board of the Co-Programmed Partnership on Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport adopts its Additional Activities Report 2023, providing an overview of investments made by the sector to enable, Europe to demonstrate deployable zero-emission maritime and inland ships by 2030.

The Partnership Board governing the Co-Programmed Partnership on Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport in the framework of Horizon Europe adopted the Additional Activities Report 2023, outlining the investments made by the broader waterborne transport sector. Danish Maritime is an active member of Waterborne TP with CEO Jenny Braat as part of the board.

The partnership leads and accelerates the transformation of waterborne transport (i.e. maritime transport and inland navigation) to eliminate environmental emissions such as greenhouse gas, air and water pollutants, through innovative technologies and operations. Its objective is to develop and demonstrate, by 2030, zero-emission solutions applicable for all main ship types and services, paving the way for zero-emission waterborne transport by 2050.

The report on additional activities entails the amount of almost EUR 600 million of investments in:

• Additional research, development and innovation
• Scaling up of technologies
• Demonstrators of these innovative technologies
• The creation of new business opportunities
• Training and skills development
• Contribution to the development of new standards, regulations and policies
• Supporting the development of ecosystems, and
• Supporting communication, dissemination, awareness raising and citizen engagement.

The Chairperson of the Delegates Group and Co-Chair of the Partnership Board, Pieter Huyskens, said:

“The Additional Activities Report 2023 shows the commitment of the broader European waterborne transport sector to develop and implement solutions for societal challenges. The EUR 600 million of additional investments made is even 20% higher than originally foreseen. In addition, it is a clear indication of the catalyst effect of the Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport Partnership. Significant investments are foreseen for future years as well, whereas the research activities will focus on technologies and solutions, which will be tested in real-life”.

Rosalinde van der Vlies, Director Clean Planet, DG RTD of the European Commission said:

“The Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport Partnership (ZEWT), which the European Commission supports through Horizon Europe, has since it was established provided important guidance to the Research and Innovation agenda related to waterborne transport. The policy landscape is rapidly changing with the introduction of waterborne transport into the EU Emissions Trading System, more stringent measures established by the International Maritime Organization as well as new legislation in EU, notably the FuelEU Maritime Regulation. This underscores the urgent need to further improve energy efficiency and making sustainable alternative fuels and electrification viable options. The broad membership base of ZEWT ensures that there will be a sustained effort to supply, distribute and use sustainable solutions that will enable the sector to reach the goals of the European Green Deal. We applaud the achievements of the Partnership”.