Cruise and Ferry Review - Summer/Spring 2020

1 7 3 AIDAperla will soon trial the largest battery storage system that has ever been installed on a passenger ship INTERV IEW How to reach 50% carbon reduction by 2050 Finding a way towards a fully sustainable cruise industry involves exploring many different options and joining forces with others. Tom Strang shares Carnival Corporation’s plans with Susan Parker T he International Maritime Organization aims to cut the shipping sector’s overall greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2050. In December 2019, Carnival Corporation joined the Getting to Zero Coalition as one of its many efforts to achieve the goal. “We wanted to work with others in the industry to learn from their achievements (and mistakes) and not to duplicate the efforts,” says Tom Strang, senior vice president of maritime affairs at Carnival Corporation. “What we are doing is looking at different fuels and technologies to push forward.” Presently the corporation has nine LNG-powered ships on order. Two additional vessels, AIDA Cruises’ AIDAnova and Costa Cruises’ Costa Smeralda, are already running on LNG 98% of the time. While LNG is not a carbon-neutral fuel, Strang says it has a good infrastructure and can reduce the carbon footprint by up to 30% depending on the type of technology used. LNG also virtually eliminates sulphur, decreases particulate matter by 95-100% and significantly reduces nitrogen oxide emissions, providing a strong base from which Carnival can move forward. Another of Carnival’s partnerships is the Pa-X-ell2 research project, which will develop fuel cells that are powered by hydrogen derived from methanol. This has the potential to supply power at even lower emissions than LNG. A pilot will be deployed on AIDAnova as early as 2021. “This is one of the first integrations of this type of technology,” says Strang. “There are very few ships at sea with fuel cells. It will be a significant size to prove the project.” Being installed on AIDAperla this year is a first-of-kind lithium ion battery power system capable of generating an output of 10 megawatts. “We’re striving ahead so Photos: Carnival Corporation