• January 12, 2021
• Environment, News, Shipping

Bud Darr, Executive Vice President Maritime Policy & Government Affairs at MSC Group, makes keynote address at last year's Maritime Transport Efficiency Conference.

As shipowners continue to eye their future fuel choices, container shipping giant MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company) has joined the Hydrogen Council as a steering member, aiming to foster cross-sector collaboration that will accelerate R&D related to clean hydrogen derived fuels and solutions.

MSC says the the initiative is part of its wider approach to decarbonization which has already seen the company pioneer the use of biofuels as a blended marine fuel and now sees MSC work with others to advance the exploration viability of hydrogen and fuels derived from it as potentially viable fuel sources for container shipping.

“MSC is actively engaging with a wide range of stakeholders to accelerate the development of clean hydrogen fuels for shipping. The future of shipping and decarbonization will rely on strong partnerships from both the perspective of technology collaboration and procurement. There must be a massive injection of energy and capital into R&D efforts to bring alternative fuels and alternative propulsion technologies to the marketplace to decarbonise all industries in the longer term. Initiatives such as the Hydrogen Council provide just the right platform to accelerate R&D, as well as to facilitate cross-industry collaboration,” said Bud Darr, Executive Vice President, Maritime Policy & Government Affairs, MSC Group.

“The future of shipping and decarbonization will rely on strong partnerships from both the perspective of technology collaboration and procurement,” he continued.

The Hydrogen Council is a global CEO-led initiative that brings together leading companies with a united vision and long-term ambition for hydrogen to foster the clean energy transition.